As hordes of Syracuse University students congregated inside the graffiti-laden walls of Chuck’s Cafe to watch the Orange fight to make it to the Final Four, the electric atmosphere was undeniable and hopeful.

In one sentence, the feeling was: clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.

And Syracuse didn’t disappoint.

By 5 p.m., soon after a historic win by the women’s basketball team, the bar slowly started to fill up. Some students came from nearby Castle Court, already feeling the buzz of lukewarm Miller Lite, looking to replace the taste of beer with the taste of success. Most were juniors and seniors, giving off the vibe that the upcoming match wouldn’t be their first rodeo on the road to the Final Four.

“In zone we trust,” said Patrick Munnia, a senior television, radio and film major, while sitting in what he said was his favorite corner booth at the bar. “I expect to make it to the Final Four.”

Moments before tipoff, students settled into booths and tables, others standing in rows in front of a large projector.

Bartender Brianna Reed said game days are some of the bar’s busiest and chaotic. The bar brings in seven bartenders to work the space, tending to students’ orders of beer and mixed drinks. Around 10 security guards stand by at the door, by the bathroom and in the back near the pool table.

On days like these, she said the bar sometimes runs out of pitchers.

The need for pitchers is what keeps Cole Little and his counterpart “always on their feet.” He and another employee — the tall, long-haired, headphone-wearing man that’s somewhat of an enigma at the bar — trudge over the beer-slicked floors to retrieve up to 700 empty pitchers from booths and tables.

A good night is an empty night, Little said. Over the course of his 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. shift, the people can get overwhelming and the music — a playlist on constant repeat — annoying. It’s why his pitcher partner wears headphones all the time.

“He wears them because the music is bad,” Little said.

Throughout the two-and-a-half-hour game, the crowd’s energy ebbed and flowed. At the half, Munnia’s enthusiastic demeanor had turned to one of frustration and confusion.

“As far as 50/50’s go, we’re not winning,” Munnia said with near tears in his eyes. “My hopes are still high, though.”

But as the second half wound down, the crowd’s hopes seemed to resurge. Bridget Morgan, a senior English and textual studies and political science dual major, said she felt the comeback was reminiscent of the Orange’s whirlwind success in 2013.

If the team won, she speculated, it would be a perfect finish to her senior year. A Rochester native, she said she’s been a fan her whole life. Her favorite memories are seeing the team win the national championship in 2003 and then watching them courtside as part of the cheerleading team when they faced off against Duke University in 2013.

With minutes left in the game, the fans enveloped the bar in a constant roar of cheers. When Malachi Richardson scored consecutive baskets to extend Syracuse’s lead, bringing visions of a win closer in sight, students stood, drenched in beer and sweat, their excitement uncontainable.

And then, as the seconds on the clock reached single digits, eventually hitting zero, it was sweet, sweet victory. In this small corner of Orange Nation, it was pure bliss: Some students wrapped each other in bear hugs, while others sang and cried.

The crowd spilled out into the alley in front of Chuck’s, then into the campus streets. The disbelief that the Orange could make it to the Final Four was now gone, replaced by pride and joy.

“We’re not going to the Final Four, are we?,” one student asked his friend.

“We are,” she said.

“Let’s go,” the student replied, high-fiving another student who ran past him down Marshall Street.

Published on March 28, 2016 at 12:59 am

Contact Annie: apalme05@syr.edu