As it turns out, Gregg Doyel won’t have the front-row view of Caitlin Clark’s rookie season that he thought he would.
According to longtime Indianapolis sportswriter Bob Kravitz, the Indianapolis Star suspended Doyel for two weeks following his uncomfortable interaction with Clark during her introductory press conference with the Indiana Fever last month. Additionally, Kravitz reports that Doyel won’t cover any Fever games in-person during the two-time National Player of the Year’s highly anticipated rookie campaign, but will continue to write columns while watching games remotely.
Reached by Awful Announcing on Monday, IndyStar executive editor Eric Larsen declined to comment on Doyel’s status.
The incident involving Doyel occurred at Clark’s introductory press conference on April 17 when the longtime columnist began a question by making the same heart-shaped gesture with his hands that the former Iowa star flashed at her family throughout her storied college career.
“You like that?” Clark replied with a smile.
“I like that you’re here, I like that you’re here,” Doyel responded.
“Yeah, I do that to my family after every game. Pretty cool,” Clark said.
“Well, start doing it to me, and we’ll get along just fine,” Doyel replied.
The awkward interaction proceeded to go viral, with many accusing Doyel of being creepy toward the 22-year-old Clark. Doyel addressed the interaction in a subsequent column, referring to his actions as “clumsy and awkward.”
In the time since, Doyel has covered the NFL Draft and the Indiana Pacers’ first-round playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks for the IndyStar but hasn’t published a story since April 29 despite the Pacers still being in the playoffs and the Fever playing their first preseason game this past Friday. According to Kravitz — who spent 14 years as a sports columnist at the IndyStar before leaving for TV station WTHR in 2014 — Doyel is expected to return from his suspension next Monday.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.