As I’m sure you have seen, my colleague posted a list of important sporting dates coming up in the next couple of months. I like the idea, so I thought I would add some of my own as well. These are some of the dates circled on my calendar that weren’t on the other list.

January 31: UFC 94 pits Georges St. Pierre against BJ Penn in one of the most eagerly anticipated matches in the history of the UFC. The two fighters have history, hatred, and ridiculous skills. Both are easily among the best five pound-for-pound fighters in the world, and the winner will stand shoulder to shoulder with Anderson Silva as the kings of the UFC. The rest of the card isn’t too bad in this one, either.

February 11: North Carolina at Duke. This is the first of two meetings between these teams, and it should be the classic that it always is. Both teams have obvious talent, and both are faced with questions galore. Both teams badly need a win here – especially the Tar Heels – so this will be a real war.

February 14: NBA Skill Competition. The slam dunk competition is relevant again, and will continue to be as long as Dwight Howard keeps participating. The rest of the events are interesting to watch as well. I think that the NBA all-star game is a mess, but the skills day is the best part of an all-star event in any sport.

February 18-24: NFL Scouting Combine. This is the ultimate voyeuristic event, and it makes for surprisingly good television. It’s hard to know how much impact the event actually has, but it is drama at its best. My favorite part of watching it is seeing the guys emerge from nowhere to become first day draft picks because of their freakish performance. The 40 yard dash is the marquee event, but I’m particularly partial to the bench press and the vertical jump.

March 5-23: World Baseball Classic. The WBC isn’t a perfect event, but the first edition three years ago was more than a little compelling, and this year should be much the same. I wish that a few more major leaguers would play, but the rosters are still packed with superstars we know, and others we don’t know yet. Last time around it was a good event to bet on as well.

April 9-12: The Masters. The greatest golf tournament of them all is also one of the great sporting events of any kind. This year’s version should be especially compelling because there is a good chance that it will be the first time that we will see Tiger Woods back in action.

April 11: The Arkansas Derby. The Kentucky Derby is my favorite single day in sports, and the Arkansas Derby is my favorite prep race for it. Part of the appeal is Oaklawn Park, the ultimate in old school racing. The bigger reason, though, is the quality of this race. Gayego was a bit of a disappointment as the winner last year, but the four winners before that – Curlin, Lawyer Ron, Afleet Alex, and Smarty Jones – have each proven themselves to be the class of their peer group. This race is when my Derby fever really gets whipped into a frenzy.