Angelle Hall was bursting with jubilation Friday night when audience and musicians shouted in unison, "Five, four, three, two, one, let’s have a parade!" and colorful confetti covered the stage.

They audience was at Angelle Hall to hear the University Symphonic Winds’ spring concert, and were delighted by the surprise that the UL Pride of Acadiana Marching Band will march in the 2012 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

"It’s my job to look across the country at college and high school music programs and figure out who’s doing it right," said Wesley Whatley, associate creative director of the parade, before making the announcement. "It’s my belief that the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is doing it right."

The news that UL will march in New York City on Nov. 22, 2012 received shouts of approval and a standing ovation from the audience.

This will be the second time the UL band marches in the parade. They were chosen from a pool of 150 schools that had applied, Whatley said.

"We chose 11. Two of those 11 were colleges and this university was one of those," he said.

Every Thanksgiving, at the call of "Let’s Have a Parade!" the Macy’s parade steps off to the musical beat of the nation’s best marching bands. The highly coveted marching band slots in the line-up of giant balloons, fantastic floats, clowns and performance groups go through an extensive vetting process.

"We’ve been proud of you for years," UL President Joe Savoie said, addressing the band. "Now the pride of Acadiana is going to rock the Big Apple."

More than 3.5 million live spectators line up for the parade every year. The parade is second only to the Superbowl in the number of TV viewers it garners each year, Whatley said.

"These students are going to represent this fine institution and this great state in front of 45 million people," Whatley said.

Conductor Brian S. Taylor was in on the surprise, but did not tell any of the students who were shocked by the news.

He reveled in the accomplishment and was ready for 18 months of preparation. "It’s the students that are going to be on Broadway and representing Louisiana."

Athletic Network Footnote: The AN regrets that Band profiles for 2011 are not posted on the AN.