Featured Stories

By Beth Stibal |

Super Bowl LV: weather, cheese, wings, strip clubs and a female zebra

Super Bowl Football
A man looks at the Lombardi Trophy at the NFL Experience Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. The city is hosting Sunday’s Super Bowl football game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Super Bowl 55 is just two days away. Tom Brady guns for his seventh title as the Buccaneers face Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas Chiefs Sunday in Tampa. KC will try to become the first team to repeat as Super Bowl champs since Brady did it with the Patriots in 2003 and 2004. This will be the second Super Bowl to be played in the Sunshine state in two years. Last year’s game was hosted by Miami at Hard Rock Stadium.

Super Bowl-Mahomes-Brady History Football
FILE – In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2021, file photo, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady reacts after winning the NFC championship NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers in Green Bay, Wis. The Super Bowl matchup features the most accomplished quarterback ever to play the game who is still thriving at age 43 in Brady against the young gun who is rewriting record books at age 25. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke, File)

The Bucs will be the first team to play the big game on their home turf but due to the pandemic Raymond James Stadium will not be full.


NFL referee Sarah Thomas will be the first woman to officiate a Super Bowl.

In addition to Thomas, Tampa Bay will have the first two female assistants to coach in a Super Bowl.

The weather could be the big story on Super Bowl Sunday. Forecasters are predicting a 75% chance of rain in Tampa, including the possibility of thunderstorms.
Rain wouldn’t interrupt the game between the Kansas City Chief and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but thunder and lightning would send both teams to the locker rooms.

Google shows “cheese” is the most searched for Super Bowl snack in 28 states including cheese balls, nachos, cheeseburger sliders and queso dip. Dairy farmers predict Super Bowl fans will fill up on 20-million pounds of cheese this weekend, enough to fill every NFL field.

Strip clubs in Florida are working to take advantage of the Super Bowl weekend despite the ongoing pandemic. Clubs all across the city of Tampa, including major location The Penthouse Club, have sank millions of dollars into COVID-safe renovations after being allowed to operate since November.

The Georgia Poultry Federation says a chicken wing shortage is possible during the big game due to demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is largely because wings are delivery-friendly, which has been a plus for restaurants while in-person dining is limited. An estimated 1.4 billion chicken wings are expected to be consumed on Super Bowl Sunday, so viewers who want them on their menu are encouraged to call in orders early.

The Weeknd, Abel Makkonen Tesfaye
FILE – The Weeknd attends the LA premiere of “Uncut Gems” at ArcLight Hollywood on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2019, in Los Angeles. The Weeknd may be known for his graphic music videos and performances featuring blood and violence, but the three-time Grammy winner says he will tone down his act during the Super Bowl halftime show. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

And, The Weeknd is sharing new details about his upcoming Super Bowl Halftime Show this weekend. There will be no surprise guests during his performance. The Weeknd told the NFL Network, “There wasn’t any room to fit it in the narrative and the story I was telling in the performance. So there’s no special guests, no.” Fans had been speculating if stars like Ariana Grande, Doja Cat or Kenny G might appear during the halftime show. The Canadian artist promised yesterday that his performance will be family-friendly and he would keep things “PG” with no stripper polls or wardrobe malfunctions.