The next time you’re at Camp Randall watching a Badger football game, take a moment to think about all the police officers — human and canine — who safeguard that venue and its 80,000 occupants.

Odin, a German Shepherd, is one of those guardians. Named after a Norse god who was the protector of heroes, he was born in the Czech Republic in 2008, then moved to North Carolina to train in explosive detection and human tracking. He joined the University of Wisconsin Police Department in 2010. He is one of only a few explosive-sniffing dogs in Wisconsin.

Brent is the only partner/handler Odin has ever known. The Marshfield, Wis. native served in Iraq with the United States Army, then joined the UW Police Department in 2005. He’s risen through the ranks to become the Detective Lieutenant.

Long before fans arrive on game day, this team is hard at work, scouring every corner of the stadium for explosives. Odin can clear an entire concourse in a fraction of the time it would take human officers to do the same task.

In January, Odin will retire from active police work. He will spend time hanging out on the family boat, playing in the snow, and romping with his buddies. After 7 years of diligent work, he’s earned some downtime. Before that happens, however, he and Brent have a full schedule of football games to work, with lots of places to sniff and thousands of fans to protect.