12 'Sports Events' We Secretly Love

Forget about big-time events like the Super Bowl and NCAA's March Madness, because as any sports fan knows, they aren't the only things that get us hyped up.

While the media analyzes and breaks down matchups between teams and players for the games, a few sports events are a little more offbeat, giving fans a reason to get excited.

Keep reading to find out what events sports fans are secretly counting down toward each year.

Any League Draft

It doesn't matter if there's a Johnny Manziel-hyped prospect in the draft or not, because one thing that every sports fan just cannot get enough of is a draft.

While we can all complain about the overcoverage and analyzing of incoming rookies and the rumors surrounding the strategy of teams, millions tune in every year to see how things unravel.

A draft signifies a new beginning, giving fans hope that, just maybe, their team will land a top-rated player who can help give them that championship feeling.

Plus, it's pretty cool to hear the stories of underdrafted guys like Tom Brady, a sixth-rounder, who goes on to win four Super Bowls.

Season Ticket Release Day

There's a reason why sports fans literally camp out for days to make sure they're one of the first in line to get tickets to their favorite team—because we're insanely passionate.

Who cares about skipping out on work or playing hooky from school; the opportunity to be in the arena or the stadium with your team just once in the upcoming season is a good enough reason to ditch.

For those who don't want to throw around their weight and brave the elements by sleeping outside for a few days, you better believe they're in front of their laptops on the team's official website, refreshing the page to get the best deal on some tickets.

It's exhausting and expensive, but we love it.

Pro Bowl

Sure, the Pro Bowl has lacked spark for years, but I still bet you found yourself watching it the Sunday before the Super Bowl, didn't you?

It's OK to admit, too, seeing how thousands of football fans inside the stadium and millions at home watching on TV who want to see superstars at their respective positions still do it.

Let's face it: As sports fans, any time there's an event going on—even one as tacky and watered down as the Pro Bowl—we're going to watch.

So, go ahead and complain about no blitzing and opposing players celebrating together during the game, but I bet you still have some interest in it when it's on.

Indy 500

It might not be the most popular sport to watch on TV or that both casual or diehard sports fans tend to follow but the Indy 500 is an event that has stood the test of time.

Tabbed as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing, the 99th rendition of the race will be seen by millions both live and on TV in May, showing that the Indy 500 is everyone's guilty pleasure.

No, drivers aren't as well known as other athletes from mainstream sports, but seeing as how the event was voted as the Best Bucket List Sporting Event by fans last year, it's an indication that you might want to consider heading to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Memorial Day weekend this year.

National Signing Day

USA TODAY Sports

The week after the Super Bowl is always a difficult one for football fans.

With the Big Game becoming the official end of football for both the pro and the college football seasons, it can be difficult for fans to get their fill of gridiron news.

Well, for a few days, at least.

That's because national signing day for college football happens during the middle of the week following Super Sunday, letting football fanatics see the next great stars in the sport, as well as following all of the coverage of what team lands the top-rated class.

It might not be as bad as the first day of the NCAA tournament, but I'm sure there were still millions procrastinating at work Wednesday to see prospects announce their college choices.

All-Star Game Skills Challenges

Like the aforementioned Pro Bowl, the entire NBA and MLB All-Star festivities and proceeding skills competitions that come along with them are nothing but moneymakers for the leagues.

With fans filing into the arenas and the stadiums to watch players participate in things like the Three-Point Competition, Slam Dunk Contest and the Home Run Derby, some may think that it's just a big waste of time.

Those people are wrong.

It might not have any bearing on who wins the title that year, and it may not even have the best players taking part, but it's still fun as hell to watch and something that we will all watch because, well, sports.

League Drafts Part II: Draft Suits

While I mentioned league drafts earlier, one of the many things that sports fans love to watch for are the outfits that incoming rookies are wearing during the most important day of their lives.

Like an old pastime, watching a guy walk up to the stage to shake a commissioner's hand has become more than just about who the player is and more about who they're wearing.

Even those who aren't sartorial critics become them that night, with fans everywhere ranking the all-time best and worst looks from past drafts.

ESPY Awards

While most award shows are catered around those in the movie or the music industry, the ESPYs is the one night in which all of our favorite athletes come together to salute the very best from the year in sports.

Occurring during the Major League Baseball All-Star break, the ESPYs have provided moments that last a lifetime for sports fans, not only honoring great teams and players from that year but also acknowledging some of the most influential people in sports.

From Jimmy Valvano's speech at the 1993 awards to Stuart Scott's last year, the ESPYs bring out every fans' raw emotions, reminding us what make sports so great.

Sports Illustrated's 'Swimsuit Edition' Release

Unlike those other magazines that guys tend to hide between their couch cushions, the Sports Illustrated "Swimsuit Issue" gives sports fans just enough skin without too much raunchiness.

For that reason, I give a big cheers to SI for releasing a new one every year.

Some of the world's sexiest ladies have donned the cover and stripped down to remind us why we're so infatuated with them to begin with. This year's cover model, Hannah Davis, reminds us why former New York Yankees superstar Derek Jeter is the luckiest man alive.

NFL Schedule Release Day

How insane has the need for football each season gotten to be? Here's a reminder that various sports networks actually have countdown and hour-long TV specials that analyze the release of the NFL schedule.

That's right, no games, just the dates of when teams will play each other.

With such interest from fans, it's OK to admit that you sit there in late April to see if your favorite team has any prime-time games and how you should plan around the kickoff times for the upcoming season.

It might not be a national holiday, but it's become a disease that has found it's way into each football fan's immune system.

ESPN the Magazine's 'Body Issue'

While the aforementioned Sports Illustrated "Swimsuit Issue" might be limited on just how much skin they really show, ESPN The Magazine's "Body Issue" is the complete opposite.

Sure, it's not all about T and A, but it's used to show the artistic side of some of our favorite athletes' bodies.

Various stars have posed for the issue—which first debuted in 2009—with fans flipping through each image to see what it takes to be a world-class athlete, as well as some of the wounds that being such a star athlete has brought to a player's body.

Just look at what years of catching footballs did to former NFL wide receiver Torry Holt's fingers.

Championship Celebrations

It's one of those moments for sports fans in which, just after their team loses in a championship game, we ask ourselves, "Is it cheating on my team if I watch the winning team get the trophy?"

The answer is absolutely not.

Even after the game ends, fans, whether out of respect or curiosity, tune in to watch hours of postgame analysis and interviews, putting their heartache aside to see what the winning team has to say atop that podium.

Yeah, it's hard to watch, but it's something that we all do for some reason.