PITTSBURGH — Regardless of what happens over the season’s final two weeks, Pittsburgh center Ryan Turnley believes the program is in better shape than the one he walked into five years ago.

Point out the Panthers have endured more volatility — at least of the non-NCAA sanctioned variety — than perhaps any other school in the nation over the last half-decade and Turnley nods his head. He understands, but he also thinks those days of flux are only a painful memory with coach Paul Chryst running the show.

“The older guys, we talk about it all the time, we hope he stays around for a long time because we think he can take his program to great heights,” Turnley said. “We think he’s a great coach. We’ve had a lot of coaches and he’s going to take Pitt where everyone wants to see it.”

Those heights won’t be reached until Turnley is long gone and the Panthers (4-6, 1-4 Big East) are in the ACC.

Still, there remains plenty for Pitt to play for heading into Saturday’s home finale against No. 21 Rutgers (9-1, 5-0). The Panthers need wins over the Scarlet Knights and South Florida on Dec. 1 to become bowl eligible for a fifth straight season.

“We’re definitely in touch with reality and what we have to do,” Pitt wide receiver Devin Street said.

What the Panthers must do is try to find some consistency. Their first season under Chryst has been a mishmash of good, bad and indifferent. For every rousing victory (Virginia Tech, Temple) there’s a perplexing loss (Youngstown State) or a heartbreaking one (Notre Dame).

“It’s been different things each game,” Chryst said. “We’ve got to learn from those lessons. To me, it hasn’t been as simple as get this one thing corrected and we’re good.”