At the age of 3, he moved to his parents' native country of Nigeria to live with family in the heart of Benin City.

[1] He grew up playing soccer in Nigeria, and by the time he reached junior high in the David Douglas School District, he was more into track & field and basketball.

[4] Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Odighizuwa was rated as the second best weakside defensive end prospect of his class, and drew comparisons to Osi Umenyiora.

[13] Comparisons were immediately made between Odighizuwa and former Giants defensive end Justin Tuck, as they were both drafted in the third round as the 74th overall pick in the draft after falling due to injury concerns, and because it was believed that Odighizuwa, like Tuck, could shift inside on passing downs as part of a 4 defensive end pass rush.

On August 28, 2017, Odighizuwa was suspended the first four games of the 2017 season for violating the league's performance enhancing drugs policy.

[17] Odighizuwa has been open about his struggles with depression, and his younger brother Osa believes Owa’s mental health issues are the reason his career ended prematurely.