The Committee of 101 announces that Doug will return to Rupp Arena in 2024

The movement accomplished the unthinkable this week. Doug will get a chance to put on the blue coat again and return to Rupp Arena — but not until after the 2023-24 season.

Per KSR’s Matt Jones, “The Blue Coat 101 Committee Board announces Doug has been suspended through the end of next season but then will be allowed to return as a Blue Coat.”

The Committee of 101 released this statement to the Herald-Leader:

“The Committee of 101 Executive Board met today to discuss the incident near the end of Saturday’s game. After extensive review and discussion, we voted to suspend this individual from Committee of 101 activities through the end of the 2023-24 basketball season. Upon return, the member will be placed in a new work assignment.”

#FreeDoug actually worked, although the timeline may not be to everyone’s liking.

For those that have not been listening to KSR this week or weren’t participating in Kentucky Twitter, in Saturday’s win over Florida at Rupp Arena, “Doug” was caught on camera giving the bird to a handful of Florida fans in attendance. By all accounts, the Gators that made the trip to Lexington were being somewhat obnoxious and could easily be spotted by the retro jerseys that each had on. However, the Committee of 101 apparently had a strong stance on using the bird during work events.

Gotta love the Blue Coat Bird Flip to end the game pic.twitter.com/f4YzdNwEvf

— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) February 5, 2023

On Sunday morning, Doug was informed that he was being let go after 19 years of service. Doug called into KSR on Monday to provide some details on the situation.

“I was headed to Nashville for a conference and I got a phone call Sunday morning saying, well, the university doesn’t want you at any of their athletic events,” he told the show. “It just kinda sucks, doesn’t it?”

“I waited my whole career to get in that club,” he said. “We don’t get paid. We don’t get any money. We get the joy of the kids, especially in the eRupption Zone where they, you know, it’s all student section. And those kids, they have a blast down there. They keep me young, you know what I mean?”

Since that call, there has been a #FreeDoug movement on social media that seemed to make enough noise. Instead of being banned permanently, the long-time Blue Coat will have to sit out the rest of the season and next before returning to Rupp.

There is nothing like the Big Blue Nation. Now let’s see the Cats beat the Hogs.