What's your state's sporting event of the year?

I guess from a worldwide vantage, it's US Open tennis or the NYC marathon. Locally, it might the Yankees' home opener.

 

If we're going beyond spectator sports, don't forget the opening of deer season.

 

For Arizona it's the Phoenix Open.

 

I didn't know you were familiar with Wisconsin.

 

And Belmont, if it matters at that point.

 

I've lived and/or worked in Virginia a good chunk of my adult life and I don't know for this state. Maybe one of the NASCAR races. The football rivalry is so lopsided it's not interesting. It's hard to know which VT football game or UVA basketball game is the main event from year to year.

My native Kansas has a similar dynamic with the college teams and the pro stadiums across the state line. The actual craziest, loudest, toughest ticket event is going to be whenever a highly ranked team goes to Allen Fieldhouse, the OU game last year, for instance. But that obviously varies from year to year.

The best "same date, same place" event might be the high school state track meet. All six classifications at the same meet in Wichita means the media focus is big and because high school baseball really isn't that great in Kansas, a lot of the best athletes are out for track. The size of the event alone is really something.

 

Grew up in Ohio and it's clearly The Game. In Indiana now, so the 500.

 

When you live in a Podunk state like Idaho ... tough to say. High school basketball finals? Boise State blowing a winnable Mountain West game on the blue turf? (an annual occurance these days) Bar fights during Gyro Days in Wallace?

 

Rhode Island, it would be the final night of the General Assembly, in which the most ridiculous legislation gets passed in the wee small hours. Kind of like what's going on in Congress right now, only in June without AC.
But seriously...probably PC-URI basketball. Always to the wire...with Danny Hurley ending up as Ed Cooley's bitch every year.

 

I guess it depends on how you define big. In terms of what event in the state draws the most attention from outside the state, it's The Masters, followed by the SEC football championship. If we're talking what is most important to Georgians, John pretty much nailed it.

 

Not that this has anything to do with signature sporting events, but I found that drive up I-81 to be highly scenic.

 

In Michigan it would be Michigan/Ohio State, then if that's on the road, UM-Notre Dame, then if THAT'S on the road, UM-Sparty.

Stunningly enough, Michigan's athletic department has maneuvered themselves into a situation in which all 3 of those games are on the road in 2018 and all three at home in 2019. Then the UM-ND series is off for the foreseeable future.

Failing all that, it would be Tigers opening day, except in years when they are expected to absolutely suck. Looks like they may have about one more year before that happens again.