It’s safe to say Joey Porter Jr. is taking his new job with the Pittsburgh Steelers more seriously than the one he held when he was a teenager.

The rookie cornerback from Penn State, who was the No. 32 overall selection in the NFL Draft, was on the practice fields of Saint Vincent College on Thursday for the first time since he was in high school.

He was a ball boy back then, toiling at a menial task while his father was an assistant coach under Mike Tomlin. It was a job Porter Jr. admitted he didn’t exactly take seriously.

“I wasn’t a great ball boy,” he said. “(This year’s ball boys) are probably better than me. I was kind of average.”

Asked what skills are needed to make a ball boy great, Porter recited traits that could describe his play as a cornerback.

“Always hustling, always being attentive and earning the respect around the guys,” he said. “That is the main thing.”

Porter Jr. practically was teethed on the fields at Saint Vincent when his father played outside linebacker for the Steelers in the 2000s, earning a Super Bowl ring. He was 6 when Joey Porter played his last season for the Steelers in 2006. His return to Saint Vincent coincided with his dad’s hiring as a defensive assistant coach in 2014.

Porter Jr. became friends with coach Mike Tomlin’s sons Dino and Mason, and they were fixtures in the college dorms during training camp.

“We remember when Joey was coming up to play video games every night and hanging out with his dad,” said defensive captain Cameron Heyward, who is entering his 13th season. “Times have changed. It’s fun to see the cycle happen.”

Heyward wasn’t surprised by Porter Jr.’s admission that his ball-boy skills weren’t up to par.

“Usually the kids whose dads play are not very good ball boys,” he said. “He had his share of fun.”

The annual trips to Saint Vincent ended when Joey Porter was not retained on Tomlin’s staff after the 2018 season. Porter Jr., a promising cornerback prospect at North Catholic and North Allegheny, began his freshman season at Penn State soon thereafter.

“This is kind of crazy,” he said before the Steelers’ first training camp workout. “I remember being here as a young kid. Now it’s full circle, and my dad is going to watch me practice now. It’s a great experience, a great feeling. I’m excited for it.”

For good measure, general manager Omar Khan called his young cornerback Wednesday, the day players were scheduled to report to Rooney Hall.

“I said, ‘Do you remember how to get here?’” Khan said. “He laughed and said he hadn’t done it in a few years, that so many things looked the same and he had so many memories coming back.”

When Porter Jr. last had a room for training camp, he shared it with Tomlin’s kids, and they slept on bunk beds. Times have changed in that regard.

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“Now, I’m in my own room, I’ve got my own bathroom,” he said. “It’s a great experience. I’m happy.”

Earlier in the week, it seemed like Porter’s arrival for the start of camp might be in doubt. He was the last unsigned rookie as his representatives and the Steelers haggled over the amount of guaranteed money in the four-year contract.

The two sides came to an agreement Tuesday — a day before Porter Jr.’s 23rd birthday. The Porter family celebrated with a trip to Topgolf in Bridgeville.

Then, it was time to get down to business for Porter Jr., who worked with the second-team defense Thursday in the opening workout. Like rookie left tackle Broderick Jones, Porter Jr. has a chance to earn a starting job with a strong camp and preseason.

“That is what camp is for,” Khan said. “We’re competing. We’ll put the best 11 guys out on the field on defense, the best 11 on offense and go from there.”

Along the way, Porter will make sure to take care of the ball boys.

“I’ve got a special (place in my) heart for them,” he said. “I know what they’re going through. It’s a lot. They’ve got a lot of respect from me because of what they do.”

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