Podcast Summary: USC Athlete Turned Cocaine Kingpin

The Hidden Third with Mariana van Zeller
Air date: January 14, 2026

Episode Overview

In this gripping episode, host Mariana van Zeller interviews Owen “Odog” Hansen, a former USC athlete whose journey took a dramatic turn from promising student to international drug trafficker, gambling kingpin, and eventually, federal prisoner. Hansen candidly shares the details of his rise, capture, and redemption, offering rare insight into the inner workings of underground markets and the psychological traps of chasing adrenaline and easy money.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Early Life and Athletic Ambition

• Upbringing in Redondo Beach: Owen grew up in a strict, blue-collar family. His parents divorced when he was eight, and he was raised by his father, a construction worker, who instilled discipline and a fierce work ethic.

  “6pm was my curfew on the weekdays, 8pm on the weekends, and I never missed one day of school. In high school, I had four years perfect attendance.” – Owen (02:52)

• Sports as a Lifeline: Volleyball and surfing were central; Owen became a top-tier beach volleyball player and earned a scholarship to USC.
• Transition to Football: When redshirted from volleyball (behind future Olympian Brook Billings), Owen’s devastated competitive drive led him to performance-enhancing drugs and eventually to walk onto the USC football team as a tight end—a meteoric rise enabled by steroids and sheer willpower (04:20–14:03).

2. Entry into the Underground: Steroid Smuggling and the First Crime Rush

• First Smuggling Experience: At 18, Owen smuggled steroids from Tijuana, hiding vials in his “butt crack.”

  “I lied for the first time... I had goosebumps when I crossed this. I just smuggled something into America, and I lied... until my arrest in 2015, I chased that rush.” – Owen (08:13)

• Adrenaline Addiction: The thrill of success made illegal activity seductive, especially for competitive athletes (09:46).

3. Building Odog Enterprises: Prescription Drugs to Cocaine

• Expanding His Market: Initially supplying steroids and prescription pills (Adderall, Xanax) to other USC students and fraternity friends, business quickly scaled.

  “They started calling me Dr. O Dog... word spread, like, O Dog’s the man.” – Owen (16:39)

• Smuggling Tactics: As volumes grew, Owen enlisted female friends to carry drugs in their clothing, keeping a low profile (17:26).
• Cocaine Distribution: Seeing the inflated prices at USC, he undercut campus dealers, leveraging connections to local Mexican gangs.

  “I have eight ounces here. Here’s a scale. Here’s the gram bags… Every 27 you sell in this ounce, you get the last gram for free.” – Owen (23:06)

• The Business Model: Owen describes a black market “concierge” model, innovatively servicing demand among USC’s privileged students.

  “I started to be like this black market concierge that no one was willing to do.” – Owen (25:41)

4. Gambling Empire: From Bookie to BetOdog.com

• After Real Estate Crash: The 2008 recession led Owen back to illicit schemes, this time as a bookmaker leveraging his network of athletes and wealthy alumni (28:03–32:19).
• Celebrity Clients: His operation grew to service Hollywood A-listers and NFL players (Paris Hilton’s Super Bowl bet—32:33).
• Ethics and Hypocrisy: Despite being a criminal, Owen drew a moral line—refusing to let athletes bet on their own sport (33:50).
• The Dark Side of Legalization: Discussion on how legalized sports betting has paradoxically accelerated the black market, with anonymity, credit, and the avoidance of taxes as key selling points (35:38).

5. Cartel Connections: Money Laundering and International Trafficking

• Concierge for Cartel: Owen’s prowess led a Mexican cartel boss (“El Jefe”) to offer him money laundering assignments, paying 10% per drop-off (44:40–47:27).
• The Test: Successfully moving $1 million from Brownsville, Texas, cemented Owen’s trust as a cartel operative.
• Expansion to Australia: At El Jefe’s suggestion, Owen used his international connections—via a former USC baseball contact and an Italian mob runner—to move cocaine into Sydney, where profits were astronomical.

  “He told me, ‘How would you like to make a million dollars a day?’ ... And I said, a million dollars a day.” – Owen (48:54)

• Laundering Methods: Owen innovated ever more creative ways to move and launder money, including vacuum-sealing bills in comic books, hiding gold coins in Ugg boots, and eventually working with a professional gambler for complex casino laundering (56:44–62:00).
• The Big Mistake: A trusted gambler lost millions on Owen’s behalf, leading to an irrecoverable debt to the cartel. To avoid execution, Owen faced the boss in Tijuana—remarkably, he was allowed to pay his debt off by continuing to work, under intense pressure and threat of violence (66:34–71:00).

6. The Bust and Aftermath

• Feds Closing In: The money laundering scheme fell apart when associates turned out to be undercover agents (77:08). Owen was arrested in a dramatic FBI/Australian police raid at a country club.
• A Sense of Relief:

  “The first time in 10 years, I finally felt relief. Like it was finally over. Like I no longer had to work for El Jefe.” – Owen (78:47)

• Legal Consequences: Facing a RICO indictment, Owen was sentenced to 21 years for racketeering (drugs and gambling). He refused to cooperate against the cartel, rejecting government offers for leniency.
• Prison Redemption: Owen earned his MBA and began an entrepreneurial hustle making “protein ice cream” in prison, which later became “California Ice Protein”—now a successful brand.

7. Reflection and Message

• Impact of Underground Life:

  “Once I crossed that line and worked for Alfa and started distributing illegal drugs at the ton level… that’s where I should have stopped.” – Owen (90:28)

• Victims and Responsibility: Owen acknowledges the harm caused by drug trafficking but avoids self-pity, focusing instead on giving back.
• Education and Prevention: Now, Owen travels to universities advocating gambling prevention, warning athletes about the seductive incrementalism of illegal activity:

  “Want you to go across [the line] one time… It can happen to anybody, especially if you’re an athlete.” – Owen (93:07)

• Relationship with Father:

  “He was disappointed. But… he was there to greet me… he’s just happy I’m out… he sees the movement.” – Owen (93:30)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the first crime rush:

  “I just smuggled something into America… until my arrest in 2015, I chased that rush.” – Owen (08:23)

• On being a black market concierge:

  “I was this black market concierge that no one was willing to do… it became a business, and that’s where the Odog Enterprises started.” – Owen (25:41)

• On facing the cartel boss:

  “The good news is you’re going to live today. The bad news is you don't owe me 3.2 million. I'm charging you interest. You owe me 4 million, and you work for me.” – El Jefe via Owen (71:00)

• On getting arrested:

  “The first time in 10 years, I finally felt relief. Like it was finally over… I was going to die. Either the cartel was going to kill me… or I’d end up in a 6 by 8 cell. And I took the latter.” – Owen (78:44–79:11)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Redondo Beach childhood & family issues: 01:42–03:09
• Transition to football & first use of steroids: 04:20–11:28
• First smuggling trip & psychological trigger: 06:09–08:23
• Scaling up drug business at USC: 16:39–25:41
• Shift to bookmaking and online gambling: 28:03–33:50
• Working for the cartel & laundering money internationally: 44:40–55:32
• Clever money laundering methods: 56:42–62:01
• Australia sting, lost millions, cartel confrontation: 62:17–71:00
• Arrest, indictment, and relief: 77:08–79:11
• Prison entrepreneurship & post-release life: 86:20–88:40
• Reflections, message, redemption, and family: 89:06–94:14

Conclusion

Owen “Odog” Hansen’s story is remarkable for its brutal honesty, operational detail, and emotional candor. What starts as a tale of lost potential and escalating risk morphs into a meditation on ambition, morality, and the high costs of illicit success. Hansen’s redemption as an entrepreneur and speaker now serves as a cautionary tale to young athletes and a window into the rarely-seen logistics of global black markets.

Recommended next step: For listeners curious about how black markets shape the legitimate world, subscribe to The Hidden Third for more firsthand journeys into the underground.