"It was a lot" - When Nick Saban's daughter Kristen Saban opened up about the challenges of being former Alabama HC's daughter

Former Alabama Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban's daughter, Kristen Saban, has continued to be present in college football circles even after her famous father retired in January. Kristen appeared at the Bryant-Denny Stadium alongside her father for the naming ceremony of Saban Field and on ESPN's "College GameDay" set, where her father is an analyst.

Even though she embraced her role as the 'coach's daughter,' it was not always easy. In an episode of "The Next Round" podcast in June, she said:

"I think it was more difficult in college. In high school, I was still kind of figuring it out, but it was just a lot. I'm still kind of looking back and I don't know why people cared so much what I did or said. But I'm very vocal, so I kind of put myself in positions sometimes but it's scary and it's a lot. People just wanna know everything, and it's kinda weird." (9:30)

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Kristen Saban details childhood experiences

Nick and Terry Saban adopted their children, Kristen and Nicholas. Growing up as the daughter of the country’s most famous college football coach, Kristen learned to recognize which friends stayed around due to her father’s elevated status.

On the "Next Round" podcast, Kristen said how difficult it was to separate the different categories of friends around her.

"Yeah, it took me a while to kind of figure that out and in high school maybe my senior year is when I kinda started realizing what people's intentions were," Kristen said. ... "But I kind of figured out who wanted the best for me and who was actually there for me through things that I went through when I was younger. It just kinda sucks at the same time."

Kristen Saban has since embraced the role of the coach's daughter. She has been at the forefront of defending new coach Kalen DeBoer as Alabama navigates a tough period in his tenure.

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