Dan Mullen uses helicopters, rattled by Kobe Bryant death

The tragic death of Kobe Bryant in a helicopter crash hit home for UF coach Dan Mullen, particularly on National Signing Day.

Dating to his tenure at Mississippi State, Mullen has used the mode of transportation to save time and hassle on the recruiting trail.

"I've gotten on them a bunch in recruiting," Mullen said Wednesday. "I more or less do it out of necessity within looking at a schedule to get it done."

But Mullen said the sudden death of Bryant, who was with his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, at the time of the helicopter crash, "does give you pause."

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A week after Bryant's Jan. 26 death, Mullen said he and his son, Canon, flew to Miami to celebrate his birthday at the Super Bowl.

"He's like, 'This is the first time we've gotten on the plane since what happened to Kobe,'" Mullen said. "So he was a little nervous."

Mullen, 47 and the father of two, said helicopter travel is not embraced by everyone.

"We have a lot of our coaches who aren't big fans of it. My wife is not a big fan of it," Mullen said. "So obviously when you see those tragedies, I mean, it just — I mean, like our whole staff, that was kind of everybody in shock when we saw that.

"It happened — we were in a staff meeting, someone came in and said it. So I think everybody was kind of like, 'That can't be right.'"

Bryant's death sent shockwaves throughout the world of sports and beyond.

Given the demands of his job, Mullen did not sound like he planned to change his travel plans.

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"I think there's probably a lot of people that just do it for flash, just, 'Hey, spend whatever, do whatever, let's make a splash and try to land a helicopter,'" he said. "Mine is more out of necessity of I have to get to these six locations in one day and that's the only way you're going to make that happen. So I've done it out of necessity."

Mullen said Bryant's death ultimately gave him pause about much more than his helicopter use.

"It really makes you appreciate what you have and it makes you appreciate to go enjoy and live life every day," he said. "I think he's a guy who certainly did that, and if you want to judge success in life off of how much you impact people's lives, I think the best way that you can judge success is how you impact other people's lives.

"He had a very, very, very successful life, and it was a very tragic end."

egthompson@orlandosentinel.com