Notre Dame endured a nightmare first half against Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon in South Bend.

One week after pulling off an upset win over Texas A&M in College Station, the Fighting Irish find themselves trailing Northern Illinois 13-7 at the half. It’s a concerning regression for a team that appeared to be on a path toward the College Football Playoff after its Week 1 performance.

Notre Dame’s offense really struggled in the first half against the Huskies. After scoring a touchdown on its opening drive, Notre Dame failed to string much together over the course of the first half.

By halftime, Notre Dame’s offense was averaging just 4.1 yards per play — less than half of Northern Illinois’ total.

Notre Dame was able to get into field goal range at the end of the first half, but the attempt was blocked.

Defensively, Notre Dame struggled to keep the ball in front. Northern Illinois averaged 9.1 yards per play — thanks mostly to an 83-yard touchdown pass that happened midway through the first quarter. But even excluding that play, Northern Illinois still averaged an impressive 5.9 yards per play in the first half.

Here’s some of the criticism that poured in from fans and media: