Introducing Ian Plaskoff

Editor’s note: We’re excited to announce that we’ve hired a new writer, Ian Plaskoff, to the Inside the Hall staff. Ian is a senior at Indiana University at the Media School. His work will begin appearing on Inside the Hall this month.

No matter where I end up or what I do in life, I am, have been and will always be a Hoosier.

I have lived just over an hour away from Bloomington my entire life. I am the son, grandson, nephew and cousin of IU alumni. Cream and crimson shirts and candy stripe pants have been in my closet for as long as I can remember.

For the first seven years of my life, I did not know what being a Hoosier truly meant.

Then, on December 22, 2013, I walked into Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall for the first time. It became real right away.

I still remember the day vividly. I sat halfway up Section B with my dad for Indiana vs. Kennesaw State. Students were gone for winter break. The atmosphere was, in retrospect, quite impressive for the game at hand. To a young Ian, it was the biggest game on the planet.

From that day on, I was hooked.

Whenever someone asks me about my Indiana basketball beginnings, I start listing things about this game.

Indiana beat Kennesaw State 90-66. Yogi Ferrell scored 25 points. Will Sheehey had 15. Noah Vonleh had 14. Stanford Robinson had six off the bench. Ferrell made three 3-pointers and nobody else made one.

I have never looked at the box score from that game in my life. Trust me here.

I remember these numbers because I cared so much about being at that lackluster winter-break nonconference game. They are more than numbers to me. They are the memories that built my Hoosier identity.

Since beginning my media career, my fandom has morphed into a passion for storytelling and serving the IU community.

Above all things, I am a play-by-play broadcaster. I have called around 200 games dating back to my sophomore year of high school at Brebeuf Jesuit in Indianapolis. I enrolled at Indiana to become a professional play-by-play broadcaster and that remains true. However, at the end of my freshman year in Bloomington, I wanted to expand my horizons and applied for writing gigs.

During my sophomore year, I covered Indiana women’s soccer for The Hoosier Network (HN) and Indiana volleyball for Indiana University Student Television (IUSTV). The more I wrote, the more I enjoyed it. As I developed my writing skills, I began to see better opportunities, filling in for select Indiana men’s and women’s basketball coverage for HN, including the NCAA women’s basketball tournament in South Carolina.

My junior year was one I will remember forever. I had the privilege to cover Indiana football’s historic 16-0 season for HN and tell the stories of one of the greatest seasons ever. I also covered year one of the Darian DeVries era of Indiana men’s basketball for IUSTV and the 2026 Men’s Final Four as part of Mike Wells’ sports writing course.

Since becoming a media member, my IU fandom has shifted to an analytical, observant perspective on the games I used to idolize. I am fascinated by the intricacies and developing storylines of every season and bringing them into bigger contexts. I love diving into players’ backgrounds and recruiting to explore the unique paths that led them to where they are today. I think watching how coaching rubs off on players and culture over time is an absolute marvel. Coach Cignetti really treated me with that one.

The stories I enjoy writing the most often have little to do with what happens on the field or court. In my mind, team sports are all about people, culture and community.

I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to cover Indiana football and men’s and women’s basketball for Inside the Hall during my senior year. Covering these programs during my college years has been one of the greatest pleasures of my life. I am beyond excited to have another go-around.

Seven-year-old Ian, sitting in section B, would freak out if he heard about what I am doing now. I owe it to him, and you, to be the best I can be.

I can’t wait to get started.

Follow Ian Plaskoff on X at @ian_plaskoff.

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