Daniel is a Partner at Starnes Davis Florie and his practice focuses on collegiate sports and higher education, representing universities in litigation, NCAA investigations, internal investigations, and Title IX reviews, as well as Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) reviews, audits and best practices for collectives.

Prior to joining Starnes, Daniel served as the Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics at the University of South Carolina Upstate, a NCAA Division I member of the Big South Conference, where he was a member of the Chancellor’s Cabinet and Executive Leadership Team.  At USC Upstate, Daniel was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the athletic department, coaches, and staff, and he served as the Legal liaison to the General Counsel’s Office for all athletic department legal issues.  During his tenure with the Spartans, they obtained their three highest finishes ever in the conference commissioner’s cup, earned their highest ever department cumulative semester grade point average while never going below a 3.0 in any semester, and set best single season records in eight of their 15 sports. Daniel also served as a member of the NCAA Legislative Committee and Subcommittee for Modernization.  On the external front, Daniel increased athletic corporate sponsorships by over 100%, the number of athletic scholarship endowments by 62%, and the overall number of annual athletic donors to its highest number to date.

Prior to his tenure at USC Upstate, Daniel served as Executive Associate Athletic Director at the University of Southern Mississippi (2013 – 2018), where he was charged with helping the Athletic Director run the day-to-day operations of the athletic department.  At Southern Miss, Daniel oversaw multiple units within the athletic department including the athletic compliance office, he served as the athletic department’s Legal liaison to the General Counsel’s Office, and he was a member of the NCAA’s Interpretations Committee, which was a group of practitioners across the country that reviewed, edited, and drafted NCAA interpretations of legislation in conjunction with NCAA staff.  Daniel was previously employed as the Director of Compliance at the University of Alabama (2011- 2013), Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance at Arkansas State University (2009 – 2011), and he started his career as an Attorney in Birmingham for six years, where his practice consisted primarily of civil litigation defense.  Throughout his career in collegiate athletics, Daniel has regularly been a featured presenter at NCAA Regional Rules seminars and the annual NACDA Convention.

Daniel earned a Bachelor of Arts from Birmingham-Southern College in 2000, where he was a member of the men’s soccer team that earned Final Four spots in three of his playing years. He obtained his Law Degree from the University of Alabama School of Law in 2003.  Daniel and his wife Claudine have three sons, Noah, David, and Mark, and they enjoy spending most weeknights and weekends at a field watching the boys play sports!