Wow, what a dismal weekend of football for me.

My two favorite teams — the Dallas Cowboys and, of course, the Cavaliers — lost by a combined five points. Nothing is worse than a gut-wrenching loss in which one play could have changed the outcome — except suffering two gut-wrenching losses. Sometimes, I feel worse after close losses than I do after blowouts.

The way the Wahoos lost was especially disappointing because I thought they were finally turning the corner and starting to play competitive football. Having been a Virginia fan for a while now, though, I have learned that the Hoos can be a big flirt. They will often blow big halftime leads and leave you heartbroken after the game.

Still, the Cavaliers made strides. At the beginning of the year, there were many differing opinions about how well this team would play. Fittingly, most experts had Virginia tallying a record of around 6-6. I get the sense that after Saturday’s narrow defeat to Southern Miss, there are once again optimists, pessimists and realists among the Wahoo faithful.

So, I’m here to present four different predictions about how the team will play the rest of the season, based on differing viewpoints among Virginia football circles.

Prediction 1: The hopeless pessimist

If you fall into this category, you think this season has already come to an end, we should fire coach Al Groh now and look to rebuild for next year. You might think Virginia’s better play at Southern Miss was an aberration. You figure that the players are devastated because they played better and harder and still lost.

Final record prediction: 0-12, possibly 1-11.

Prediction 2: The level-headed realist

If you can relate to the level-headed realist, then you see some life in the team and the possibility that the season is not a total bust. If you’re a fourth-year student like me, you anticipate that there could be a few special moments this season for your final games as a student-fan. You think that Virginia could definitely win games against Indiana, Maryland and Duke. You hope that Virginia could potentially pull off an upset or two. You believe that Groh has probably worn out his welcome and expect he will be “forced to resign” at the end of the season. You consider the thought of an upset against Virginia Tech to be mostly ridiculous, but concede that it could happen ­— kind of like in “Dumb and Dumber” when Mary tells Lloyd that there is a one in a million chance they will end up together. “So you’re telling me there’s a chance.”

Though I most likely fall into this category, I don’t consider myself to be level-headed all the time. A really good or bad game at North Carolina in two weeks could change my outlook.

Final record prediction: probably 3-9 or 4-8, 5-7 with luck.

Prediction 3: The barely bowl-bound believer

If you can identify with this camp, you see Virginia’s play against the Golden Eagles as a sign of better things to come. You’re expecting this season to resemble the 2002, 2007 and 2008 seasons. The Wahoos started 0-2, 0-1 and 1-3 respectively in each of those years only to rebound with sizable winning streaks. You don’t expect to match the nine-win years of 2002 and 2007, but you expect Virginia to achieve that sixth win that eluded last year’s team. You realize that going 6-6 means the Cavaliers need to win six of their last nine games. Time is of the essence. Miami, Clemson and Virginia Tech loom at the end of the season as the most likely teams to defeat Virginia. This means the team will have to rise up and snag victories from some solid teams like North Carolina and Georgia Tech. If it can’t, you’re going to have to hope for some upsets. You still have the tilt against the Hokies circled on your calendar and still have faith that it can be the barn burner you were expecting before the year began. If this is the path the team actually ends up following, it poses the biggest problem for those crying, ‘Fire Groh’ at the end of the year. Several fans may still be calling for his head if he goes 6-6 but the administration will have justification for keeping him. This scenario could, in all honestly, hurt season ticket sales more in 2010 than if we go 3-9 or 4-8.

Final record prediction: 6-6 or 7-5

Prediction 4: The incurable optimist

Look, right now it’s easy to say that if we have a miracle turnaround, it will only set the program back by keeping Groh around for longer than he should be. This may be true, but I pray to the college football gods that this scenario comes true. It is my fourth year, and there’s no way I’m ready to throw in the towel and turn my attention to basketball coach Tony Bennett quite yet. It is only September, after all. Still, even with all the optimism I can muster — and I can usually muster a lot — I just can’t see this scenario coming to fruition. The Cavaliers played much better against Southern Miss., but I don’t see that level of play knocking off North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Miami and the like. I know Groh is a dangerous coach with his back to the wall, but not even the demigod himself, Chris Long, could carry this team to a Coastal Division title, an ACC Championship berth or a top-tier bowl at this point. I can only hope that I am wrong about this one, but I just don’t see it happening. And all you Groh haters can keep your mouths shut if the Hoos improve this much. No amount of kicking and screaming would get him fired. In fact, he would probably win ACC Coach of the Year.

Final record prediction: 8-4 or 9-3

So there you have it. Where do you fall? Despite predicting a few wins, I am mostly admitting defeat. Prove me wrong, boys — please.