Colonel (Col) Hager was born in Philadelphia, PA but grew up in Southern MD and El Paso, TX.  He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1989 and graduated from boot camp in 1990.  His first unit was VMFA-321, an F-4 Phantom Squadron.  While in college and law school he remained in the reserves earning the additional Military Operational Specialties of Scout Swimmer, Coxswain, and Civil Affairs Officer, he also held the billets of Latin American Intelligence Analyst (Marine Corps Intelligence Activity, Suitland MD) and S4-A (II MEF Special Operations Training Group, Camp Lejeune NC).  In 1997 he graduated from the University of Maryland College Park and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant. 

He graduated from the University of Baltimore with a Juris Doctorate in 2000.  After graduating from The Basic School and Naval Justice School, he was assigned to 1^st Force Service Support Group (1^st FSSG), Camp Pendleton, CA as a Detailed Defense Counsel.   At 1^st FSSG, he deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as a Defense Counsel and Civil Affairs Officer.  When he returned to Camp Pendleton, he was assigned as the Deputy Staff Judge Advocate for 1^st FSSG.  Col Hager left Camp Pendleton and checked in at Marine Corps Bases Japan in 2005 where he served as the Foreign Jurisdiction Officer and the Staff Judge Advocate (SJA) for the 31^st Marine Expeditionary Unit (31^st MEU).  During his time with the MEU he was given the additional duties as the Civil Military Operations Officer and represented the 31st MEU in more than a dozen countries in the INDO-PACIFIC.

Following his time at the MEU, Col Hager was selected for a fellowship at George Washington University in Washington DC, where he received his Masters of Laws in International Law. After graduation he was assigned as the Marine Forces South SJA and represented the Marine Corps throughout Latin America, South America, and the Caribbean.  Following this tour, Col Hager headed back to the Pacific where he was assigned as the Deputy SJA of Marine Forces Pacific and was the Aide de Camp for the MARFORPAC Commanding General.  At the end of his tour with MARFORPAC, he was selected to be a Deputy Legal Counsel for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington DC.  In this role he represented the United States on several delegations to the United Nations, participated in National Security Council legal advisor matters, and worked with interagency partners on a daily basis.

Col Hager left the Joint Staff to be the SJA at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, where he was selected for command.  His command tour was as the H&S Battalion Commander, School of Infantry West, in Camp Pendleton CA.  At the end of that tour he was selected for Top Level School and attended the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle PA.  Col Hager served in Okinawa Japan as the III MEF SJA until May 2021 when he assumed command of Camp Mujuk in South Korea. 

Col Hager’s personal decorations include the Combat Action Ribbon, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (x3), the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (x4), and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.