Fans Question Curt Cignetti's Timid Coaching After Fiery 'College GameDay' Trash Talk

Karl Rasmussen | 3 Hours Ago

Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti during the first half against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Curt Cignetti wasn't lacking any confidence prior to Indiana's first-round College Football Playoff showdown against Notre Dame on Friday evening. During the coach's pregame appearance on ESPN's College GameDay, Cignetti didn't mince words when declaring his team was going to put on a show against the Fighting Irish.

When it came time to back up those words, that confidence seemed to disappear entirely. Indiana was routed 27–17 by Notre Dame, and Cignetti's squad didn't put up much of a fight. There were various points in which Cignetti made some rather timid coaching decisions. Most notably was when he opted to punt the ball while in plus-territory despite the team trailing by three scores in the fourth quarter.

Cignetti, who boasted about how Indiana dominates ranked opponents, despite the Hoosiers losing their only Top-25 matchup this season, came under fire from college football fans who questioned how he could do all that pregame yapping only to coach with his tail between his legs.

🫣 https://t.co/6VEffTFaO6

— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) December 21, 2024

Curt Cignetti talked all that trash just to punt like a coward down 17 in the 4th smh https://t.co/2BLlIDZfGy

— Master (@MasterTes) December 21, 2024

I don't understand why Curt Cignetti said what he said on GameDay if he was going to coach the game this way.

— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) December 21, 2024

Curt Cignetti punted in plus territory down 17 with 10:41 left in a playoff game.

Get this fraud out of here.

— Brandon Walker (@BFW) December 21, 2024

Notre Dame vastly better than Indiana but the Cignetti game plan has been puzzling.

Six punts. Fair catches on kick returns. Rushing on 3rd and 10.

This is not how you spring a playoff upset.

— Dan Wetzel (@DanWetzel) December 21, 2024

For someone who oozed confidence on television before kickoff, Cignetti certainly did not look like he had any faith in his offense to convert in big moments. College football fans couldn't wait to remind him of his pregame comments as the Hoosiers bowed out in the first round of the playoff.

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