At 2:30 p.m. Saturday, the sparse crowd watching the Syracuse game at Harry’s Bar remained in its seats.

The game-at that point-was 31-14 and the Orange was dominating. But Illinois had scored an early fourth quarter touchdown, worrying SU supporters.

In reality, the contest was in the books. It would have taken a miracle for the Illini to beat SU. But still, no one moved, and moans and head shaking swept across the bar. It’s what the worst losing streak in Syracuse history-11 games-will do to a fan.

The mood is one I’ve seen many times as a New York Jets fan, one of despair and the ultimate pessimism, no matter the situation. One spectator groaned, ‘This can’t be happening, don’t do it,’ as Illinois cut the deficit to 17. Others simply put their heads down and waited for the seconds to tick away.

Finally, when the clock hit zero and Syracuse had outscored its opponent, there was more of a sense of relief than celebration: relief from escaping over a year-long span of torturous losses.

Winning is something the Orange hadn’t felt in 371 days, when it beat Buffalo 31-0 on Sept. 10, 2005. During that stretch, Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot a man in the face, Tomkat and Brangelina somehow became household names and we were all 534,240 minutes younger.

It’s felt like forever.

That victory over Buffalo shouldn’t even count, though. The last win for the Orange over a decent opponent was Nov. 27, 2004, at Boston College.

It’s been a while since I’ve felt I was following a respectable, winning team. For the past year, I thought I may have been following the two worst football teams in the entire United States-the Jets (who finished last year at 4-12) and the 1-10 Orange. This weekend gives me a brief beacon of hope, very cautious hope. The Jets (now 1-1) and Syracuse (1-2) both look moderately sharp and better than expected. The two teams share another similarity: they have very easy schedules.

Syracuse has three straight winnable homes games, facing Miami of Ohio, Wyoming and Pittsburgh. Looking at the schedule, I see more games the Orange should be competitive in: at Cincinnati, at South Florida, vs. Connecticut and at Rutgers.

Still, the Jets fan inside me can’t let me look too far ahead for the Orange and can’t make me appreciate this win too much. I’ve been through too many late season collapses, and been let down after too many high expectations.

The same could be said for those who feared the worst at Harry’s. We all looked at the upcoming Syracuse schedule on the screen and counted the number of potential victories. Still, after finally tasting a win, skepticism and sarcasm took place instead of high fives and cheers. Jokes about a BCS bowl bid and a national championship circulated as the crowd left the bar.

Maybe it’s a New York thing; maybe we just are afraid of our local team failing. Or maybe it was the fact that most of the people sitting at Harry’s were dedicated enough to travel down to the bar at noon on a Saturday, likely meaning they’ve watched most of the painful games in the past few years. The success of the team, especially the offense, brought stunned looks on most of our faces, as we’ve grown accustomed to one of the most anemic and inefficient offenses in Division I-A football.

But Saturday, for the first time in a long time, there was actually some evidence in the hope for a brighter future.

The pessimists will think it’s only one game. But one game is enough for some to start talking positively, something everyone outside of the program literally hasn’t done in years.

‘This might be a winning season,’ said Kenny Paradis, a senior biology major. ‘I think we could be a threat in the years to come. I’m not concerned that it was just one win. They really needed one and I think they’ll get better.’

It seems the negative thoughts haven’t reached everyone. Maybe fans like Paradis have cheering down pat. We beleaguered spectators will tell you how many times our hearts have been torn out, or how bad the teams we’ve watched have been. Optimistic fans such as Paradis save themselves a lot of pain.

But after a near victory against Iowa, and a true victory Saturday, the hometown mood might be a little different this Saturday against Miami (Ohio).

Even the pessimists may see some reasons to raise their expectations once again.