Curt Cignetti and Indiana appeared to wave the white flag early during a loss to Notre Dame with a punt in the fourth quarter down three scores.

With just over 10 minutes remaining and trailing 20-3, the Hoosiers faced a critical fourth-and-11 at the Notre Dame 48-yard line. Instead of going for it, they opted to punt the ball back to the Irish. On the ensuing possession, Notre Dame milked nearly 6 minutes off the game clock and scored a touchdown to go up 27-3. 

The decision in the win-or-go-home matchup didn’t sit well with most, including the ESPN broadcast crew.

“I don’t understand,” Greg McElroy said. “It makes no sense.”

Cignetti explained his thinking after the game, essentially calling out his offense.

“I didn’t want to punt. But we were doing nothing on offense. And our defense was fighting. That was the only positive, really, that I could draw, was that our defense was still fighting,” Cignetti said. “Because offense was doing nothing. And I didn’t want to go fourth-and-10, because you’re just wishing and hoping: You have nothing to base it on that you can convert fourth-and-10 at that point.”

Cignetti talked a lot of trash before the game, so the conservative call and his explanation drew much criticism.

Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti

© Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“Humble pie for big mouth,” one fan said.

Another added: “This is an honestly shocking admission – basically a SURRENDER comment. They had no answers on offense, so don’t even try.”

Indiana scored a couple of very late touchdowns to make the final score look better, but the performance from Cignetti’s squad left many questioning their inclusion in the College Football Playoff. His decision to punt only amplified the criticism.

“Huge ‘we’re just happy to be here’ vibes by Indiana with that punt decision,” another fan added.

Notre Dame advances to face Georgia. According to ESPN BET, the Bulldogs are a 1-point favorite for the matchup.