NEW HAVEN, Conn. (October 9, 2026) -- Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Commissioner Dan Mara was selected as the guest for the inaugural episode of the Big Pear Daily Podcast. Mara recently joined host and Big Pear founder Alex Washington to discuss the growth, philosophy, and future of the CACC.

Mara has been the CACC commissioner since 2006 and recently signed a five-year extension. In the podcast, he emphasized the league's stability. He pointed to the addition of esports and women's flag football as championship sports and the pending addition of Monroe University as a 12th member as signs of health and growth. A central theme of the interview is that education is the foundation of the CACC. Mara believes that college athletics should support the educational mission of its institutions -- not compete with it.

Big Pear Daily was founded as a go-to source for NCAA Division II athletics coverage. Its mission is to shine a spotlight on D-II athletes who often don't get the recognition they deserve.

See the complete interview below.