Meet Don Fischer, the legendary voice of Indiana football, basketball
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
ATLANTA — No one is happier to be heading to Atlanta than Indiana football’s longtime play-by-play voice Don Fischer.
Fischer, who will be in the booth for the College Football Playoff semifinals at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Friday night, has been calling IU games for five-plus decades, but this is uncharted territory for the Hall of Fame broadcaster given the football team’s lack of historic success.
“I honestly never thought it was going to happen,” Fischer told The Herald-Times ahead of the Big Ten Title game. “I got to the point in the last 10 years, it’s never going to happen. I’m never going to go to the Rose Bowl, never get the chance to win a Big Ten championship. I just didn’t think it was possible in my heart.”
Fischer’s calls have been featured in recent national telecasts — he recently called out Paul Finebaum on a touchdown during the Rose Bowl — as a way to honor his storied career.
Here’s what to know about the voice of the Hoosiers:
Don Fischer has called more than 2,000 Indiana games
Fischer has been in the booth for IU for 52 years, having taken over play-by-play duties for the men’s basketball and football teams in 1973.
He’s called 12 bowl games, the football team’s first CFP appearance in 2024, five NCAA basketball Final Fours, four NCAA basketball championship games and two NIT championship games.
Indiana football’s play-by-play voice is most decorated broadcaster in the state
Fischer has been named Indiana’s Sportscaster of the Year 32 times during his career. He was inducted into the Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame in 2022.
He received the Chris Schenkel Award from the National Football Foundation that the organization hands out to “a sports broadcaster who has had a long and distinguished career broadcasting college football games.”
Fischer has also earned Indiana Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Don Fischer sits down with IU coaches on weekly basis for coaches show
Fischer has interviewed Indiana coaches for a coaches show going all the way back to the days of Bob Knight and Lee Corso.
When Corso was patrolling the sideline, Fischer used to be taped in an Indianapolis-based studio at the time and the two would take questions from live callers. The show has originated from a local Bloomington restaurant in recent years and featured record crowds this year during IU’s undefeated season.
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Inside the career of Don Fischer, Indiana’s iconic play-by-play voice
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos