Arizona State will kick off its NCAA play with a showdown with some of the sport's top programs at Gila River Arena.
On Jan. 11, passionate football fans that reside in the desert will be participating in the festivities surrounding the College Football Playoff National Championship that will take place in Glendale. As two of the country's best football programs convene for the national championship, the Greater Phoenix area will again enjoy one of football's top spectacles right in its backyard.
Hosting a nationally-televised sporting event is nothing new for Phoenix, but local residents and those visiting for the football festivites will have a chance to see their first Division I NCAA hockey tournament, as the newly-minted D-I Sun Devils will host the Desert Hockey Classic.