Gregg Doyel’s parents lived by the values they passed down, turning adversity into inspiration for future generations.
Gregg Doyel has established himself as one of America’s most prominent sports columnists, currently writing for the Indianapolis Star after serving as a national sports writer for CBSSports.com.
His career spans decades of covering major sporting events, writing acclaimed books about college basketball programs, and earning recognition from the Associated Press Sports Editors.
He claimed first place in their annual contest for column writing in both 2014 and 2017.
Doyel’s journey from Hawaii-born son of a Navy serviceman to award-winning journalist reflects not just personal ambition but the profound influence of parents who shaped his character through their own remarkable stories of perseverance, sacrifice, and unwavering support.
His father’s rise from poverty to become a respected judge and his mother’s quiet strength as she navigated single parenthood while pursuing her own education demonstrate the foundational values that would later define Doyel’s approach to storytelling and life.
Gregg Doyel’s Parents Built A Legacy From Nothing
Robert L. Doyel: From Chicken Coop to Courtroom
Robert L. Doyel’s life story reads like an American dream realized through sheer determination and intellectual brilliance.
Born just ten days before America dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in August 1945, Robert entered a post-World War II world as the youngest of ten children in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
His family lived in crushing poverty, existing without electricity, running water, or gas for most of his childhood.
The government cheese and Spam-like canned meat products they received from weekly distribution lines often constituted their primary sustenance.
The family’s circumstances became even more dire when fire tore through their ramshackle house during the Christmas season of 1949, forcing them to take shelter in a neighbor’s empty chicken coop.
Despite these harsh beginnings, Robert’s older siblings and mother recognized his potential, insisting he pursue education as his path out of poverty.
Their guidance counselor at Shawnee High School echoed this sentiment, and Robert became the first person in his family to attend college.
Robert’s intellectual capabilities quickly became apparent. He initially studied French in college, mastering the language so thoroughly that he could still read it fluently decades later.
However, practical considerations led him to switch to accounting, where his mathematical prowess made calculators optional tools rather than necessities.
Law school followed, where he distinguished himself as managing editor of the Oklahoma Law Review before launching a career that would span private practice, judicial service, and academia.
His professional journey took him from a law firm in Norman, Oklahoma, to teaching positions at the University of Mississippi, where he made headlines in 1979 by shutting down the town’s segregated youth baseball league.
This action exemplified the moral courage that defined Robert throughout his life – the same quality that had emerged in childhood when he defended an elderly tamale vendor from cruel harassment, using his quick fists to settle the matter definitively.
Robert’s brilliance extended beyond legal matters into every aspect of intellectual engagement.
Family members learned to avoid challenging him at Trivial Pursuit, knowing defeat was inevitable.
His mastery of tile rummy was legendary – he could deconstruct complex table arrangements of fifty or more tiles and reorganize them entirely to play his final hand, a mental feat that left observers marveling at his cognitive abilities.
The breadth of Robert’s accomplishments continued expanding throughout his career.
He turned down political opportunities and declined the chance to serve as dean at Oklahoma City University School of Law, choosing instead to pursue judicial office in Florida.
After winning the election as a judge, he served with distinction before retiring in 2010, ready to begin what he hoped would be a peaceful chapter of his life.
Retirement brought new creative outlets as Robert authored “The Baby Mama Syndrome,” drawing from his family law experiences, and dictated a 350-page mystery novel, keeping the entire complex plot structure in his mind before having it transcribed.
However, his golden years took a devastating turn when a car struck him in a crosswalk just months after leaving the bench.
The accident left him with multiple fractures throughout his body and began a cascade of health challenges that would define his final years.
Robert’s response to adversity remained characteristically defiant.
Despite suffering compression fractures in his vertebrae, heart attacks, and multiple strokes that left him with aphasia and double vision, he maintained his fighting spirit.
Unable to take narcotic pain medications due to severe allergic reactions that caused terrifying hallucinations, he endured chronic pain with the same stoicism that had carried him through childhood poverty.
Even as his magnificent vocabulary became trapped behind stroke-damaged neural pathways, Robert continued working with speech therapists and personal trainers, declaring, “Giving up isn’t in my DNA.”
His son recalls him correcting his own mistakes with gentle humor, saying “That’s my stroke talking” when numbers came out wrong, sometimes even chuckling at his brain’s misfires.
Robert L. Doyel died on November 1, 2024, at age 79, leaving behind a legacy that stretched from an Oklahoma chicken coop to a Florida courtroom, encompassing decades of legal service, academic achievement, and unwavering moral courage.
Martha Boynton: The Quiet Force Behind Success
Martha Boynton’s story represents a different kind of strength – the steady, self-sacrificing devotion that often goes unrecognized but proves equally essential in shaping successful lives.
Growing up in a traditional 1950s household, Martha learned domestic skills that would serve her family well: cooking, sewing, and playing piano with Scott Joplin-level expertise.
Her typing speed of 120 words per minute on manual typewriters became a crucial source of income during challenging times.
Martha’s educational journey reflected the complex choices facing women of her generation.
Beginning her studies at DePauw University in Indiana, she transferred to the University of Oklahoma to be closer to her high school sweetheart, Robert Doyel.
When they married, Martha made the common sacrifice of her era, dropping out of college to work while Robert attended law school.
Her job in the university’s chemistry department, later at a bank owned by 1969 Heisman Trophy winner Steve Owens, provided the financial foundation that allowed Robert to pursue his legal education.
The family’s move to Mississippi in 1978 coincided with Martha and Robert’s divorce, placing Martha in the challenging position of single motherhood while supporting two children on a secretary’s salary at Ole Miss.
Her determination to complete her own education led her to attend night classes while working full-time and supplementing her income by typing papers for college students at an impressive rate of 120 words per minute.
While she couldn’t coach sports teams or provide the athletic instruction that her son craved, she ensured her presence at every game, her voice calling encouragement from the stands.
When loneliness overwhelmed young Gregg during the difficult period following his parents’ divorce, Martha grabbed a baseball glove despite her complete lack of athletic ability and played catch in the backyard, throwing with the awkward technique her son lovingly compared to Florence “Flo” Castleberry from the sitcom “Alice.”
The financial challenges of single parenthood never prevented Martha from prioritizing her children’s needs.
She wore outdated polyester pants years after they fell from fashion, recycled containers when it was economical rather than environmental, and drove a beige 1978 Chevy Monte Carlo well past any reasonable retirement date.
These choices weren’t made from ignorance of current trends but from deliberate decisions to ensure her children had proper clothes, equipment, and opportunities.
Martha’s giving nature extended beyond basic necessities to emotional support and encouragement.
Her weekly letters to Gregg after he chose to live with his father showcased writing abilities that her journalist son would later acknowledge as superior to his own professional work.
These communications, filled with her characteristic dashes and asides, provided connection and support across the miles while never expressing bitterness about the family’s separation.
Her commitment to education eventually culminated in earning her own college degree in her late thirties while working full-time and supporting her daughter through the University of North Carolina.
The financial strain was considerable – her secretary position at Ole Miss paid less than $10,000 annually in the mid-1980s – yet she managed to send birthday and Christmas checks to both children, sometimes including unexpected gifts “just because.”
While she couldn’t provide athletic coaching or sports expertise, she offered something equally valuable: unwavering presence, unconditional support, and the security of knowing someone would always be in the stands cheering.
Now living in retirement in West Columbia, South Carolina, Martha continues her pattern of giving, occasionally sending unexpected envelopes to her successful son, who has never forgotten the foundation she provided.
In Case You Didn’t Know
- Doyel was named all-state twice in baseball (1987, 1988) and once in soccer (1986) while attending Stratford Academy in Macon, Georgia.
- He briefly hosted radio shows, including a program on Cincinnati’s WCKY (AM) from 9 am to noon with Mo Egger in 2007, and co-hosted WLW’s Sunday Morning SportsTalk with Ken Broo.
- Doyel faced professional consequences for controversial interactions with athletes, including being banned from covering the Indiana Fever for one season after an uncomfortable exchange with Caitlin Clark in 2024, and having a heated confrontation with Pascal Siakam during a 2025 post-game conference.
