Nick Saban’s coached in 10 national championship games so he knows his way around the grand stage.

Round 1, however, was a different story.

Appearing on multiple ESPN television broadcasts before Monday’s CFP title game between Georgia and TCU, Saban recalled his first trip to the mountaintop.

This was Jan. 4, 2004 when LSU met top-ranked Oklahoma in the BCS championship. His Tigers lost to Florida in October but hit another gear while winning the next seven games. That didn’t put him at ease walking into the Superdome that night.

Saban, appearing on the Marty and McGee Show, said he felt a “tremendous amount of anxiety” before kickoff.

“And I have to be honest with you … my son walked in the room and I said I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous and as anxious as I was for that game,” Saban said.

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There was pressure to finish the job for a team that he said showed tremendous resilience in battling back from the midseason loss.

Saban added another detail appearing later on the ESPN College GameDay set.

“I was so anxious, I said I can’t go up in front of the team and have them see me as anxious about the game,” Saban said. “So I had to change my … and fake them out a little bit.”

LSU ultimately beat Oklahoma, 21-14 and never trailed on the night Saban won his first of seven national championships. He’s 7-3 in title games — 3-3 in the CFP era after splitting the last two.

That success added another complication.

“It gets a little better as you go and you play in a couple of them,” Saban explained, “but when the expectation becomes you’re supposed to win, then it kinda starts going back the other way.”

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.