"The first one was to have compassion": Nick Saban reveals three greatest life lessons he learnt from his father growing up

Legendary coach Nick Saban had a humble upbringing. His parents didn't go to college, but the values they instilled that are required to win in life are something that the coach carries with him to date. The 73-year-old veteran was speaking to "Pure Athlete" panelists on Saturday, where he shared about his life experiences, coaching journey, winning championships and his upbringing under a strict dad.

He shared the three biggest life lessons that he received and molded him to be a good human being and eventually achieve success on and off the football field.

“The first one was to have compassion for other people, you know, treat people like you would like to be treated, which I think was really important in developing relationships with players and family, and just about everybody associated with, you know, any kind of business that you would have,” Saban said (Timestamp - 2:00).

The second one he mentioned was about taking accountability. Being a man, it is essential to find a job and make a living while also owning up to the mistakes and improving gradually. This quality has to be inherent.

He understood the nuance of this value practically by helping his dad at the service center.

“I worked at my dad's service station from the time I was 11 years old, and I was accountable. So I don't care if you're washing a car, fixing a tire, cutting the grass, there is always a reckoning, you know, at the end of the day.

"'How did you do that? Did you do it?' Well, if you didn't do it, you had to do it again. So, 'Did you cut the grass? Did you trim? Did you sweep? Did you clean the mirror?' And if you didn't do anything with those things correctly, you had to do it again,” Saban added.

Nick Saban struggled to understand the third biggest lesson

According to Nick Saban's dad, it's not about winning but being the best version of yourself. Growing up, Saban Jr. was more focused on winning games and beating opponents. He was not a fan of his father's idea.

But he realized that winning over somebody limits the growth and it is your opponent who is dictating how good you can become, even though you possess the potential to grow even bigger.

This induced a sense of consistency within Saban, who used to practice on the following day, even if the team had won a national championship. That was the Bama standard he had set and followed for the last 17 years before calling a retirement on January 10, 2024.