ALMetro360 Magazine

Kristi Malzahn – Funny Lady, Outspoken and Passionate About Her Kids B Y L YNN C OX P HOTOS BY D ARREN F REEMAN W HO KNEW A FUNNY GIRL FROM F ORT S MITH , A RKANSAS , WOULD GROW UP TO BE THE WIFE OF A MAJOR COLLEGE COACH AND LAND IN THE HOT SEAT SOMETIMES FOR HER OUTSPOKEN WIT AND STRAIGHTFORWARD STYLE ? risti Malzahn, wife of Gus Malzahn, head coach of the Auburn University football team, knew from day one that she was marrying someone with the desire to be a coach. But, to grow to this level has been quite the journey. Kristi and Gus Malzahn met while she was an eighth-grader and he a junior at Fort Smith Christian Academy. It was a small close-knit school, so when they met, he considered her just a little kid. She said, “He thought I was enamored with him but, no, at that time I was not. And yet, when he returned to Fort Smith from college, he decided she was all grown up, and they started to date. They were married while she was in college and started on this coaching jour- ney together. Kristi Malzahn did not have a big lofty dream of a high-powered career. Her heart and desire early on were to be- come a wife and mother. During the early years of their marriage, she was in insurance sales and made more money than her hus- band some of those years. She says, “At the end of the day, it was a job. I enjoyed it. It was very conducive to my schedule and to my per- sonality. When it really came down to it my hus- band and kids were my career, my focus.” The Malzahns are the parents of two girls, now young women and married. They are the grand- parents to a little boy, 19 months old, and will have a new grandchild in December. As parents, SPOTLIGHT 360 ............................................................................................................................... 32 AL/ Metro 360 www.almetro360.com K