Almost seven years after he rocked back and forth while answering reporters’ questions at his introductory news conference, Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi stood up straight Monday.

With his seventh season only days away, he appeared more confident in his team than he did the day after Christmas 2014, when he couldn’t have known what would confront him.

The honeymoon period long since over, Narduzzi will lead the Panthers in their opener against UMass at 4 p.m. Saturday at Heinz Field.

He is the second-longest tenured Pitt football coach in the past 56 years, one season short of Walt Harris (1997-2004). Only three other men — John Michelosen and College Football Hall of Famers Jock Sutherland and Pop Warner — have been Pitt’s head coach longer. Also, Narduzzi has won as many games (42) as Dave Wannstedt in the same number of seasons (six).

Narduzzi said he doesn’t count the years, but he knows how difficult it is to survive them.

“It’s great to be here, but in this profession you never know,” he said. “That’s the first thing. It’s one game at a time, one year at a time.”

He has a contract through 2024 and the confidence of Chancellor Patrick Gallagher and athletic director Heather Lyke. But circumstances change quickly in college football, and Narduzzi has been around long enough to know that.

“It’s hard to be a head coach that many years. It’s a two-way street,” Narduzzi said. “Do you want to stay or do you want to go or do you have to go? There’s a little bit of both. Guys jump ship and go, as you guys know what’s happened here in the past, guys taking different jobs.

“I love Pittsburgh and enjoy working with our kids and our staff and our people.”

Narduzzi was making no predictions or bold proclamations Monday at his first news conference after training camp. But he feels good about his team, partially because it’s 0-0 and hasn’t hit many roadblocks. But his confidence also is due to the culture he has built, and the depth that has resulted from that culture.

“The culture here I think is great, and that’s why we’ve got guys that stick it out and play and guys that come back and play a fifth year or sixth year or seventh year for (wide receiver Tre) Tipton.”

But Narduzzi’s teams never have lost fewer than five games in any of his previous six seasons.

The elements that might set this Pitt team apart from his others — at least before it plays its first game — are options at multiple positions. Narduzzi is pleased with his depth at wide receiver, running back, kicker, defensive line, linebacker and free safety.

At defensive tackle, he listed six players for two positions, with starters Calijah Kancey and Keyshon Camp backed up by Devin Danielson, Deandre Jules, David Green and Tyler Bentley. If they’re as good as advertised, that’s some serious depth.

Meanwhile, kickers Ben Sauls and Sam Scarton will take their competition into the rest of this week. Same situation for free safeties Erick Hallett II and Rashad Battle, who are competing to replace Damar Hamlin, who was drafted by the Buffalo Bills. At wide receiver, all six players on the two-deep (three positions) have experience. He listed A.J. Davis, Izzy Abanikanda and Vincent Davis as equals at running back.

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