Missouri still does not have a clear answer on when Ahmad Hardy will be back, and Eli Drinkwitz isn’t pretending otherwise.
The Tigers’ coach said Wednesday morning that the junior running back is still working his way back after a gunshot wound suffered in May, and that the process can’t be hurried.
“The biggest thing for us is just trying to get Ahmad back healthy and put him out there in a position to be successful,” Drinkwitz said in an interview with Wake Up Barstool. “You can't rush it.
He's like a thoroughbred. Unless his gait is exactly where it needs to be, you can't put him in a bad position.
“We're taking it day by day, step by step. He's incredibly frustrated, and that's been the toughest thing on me watching.
He's extremely competitive, and football is what matters to him most. I think his son and football are the two things he lives for, so having football on the shelf right now has been difficult for him.
“He's working every day to get back. I don't have an update.
Don't really have a timetable yet. We'll see.
Hopefully it's sooner than later.”
Drinkwitz said at SEC Media Days in July that Hardy had been medically cleared from the gunshot injury and could start the return-to-football portion of his recovery. That was 58 days ago, and Hardy still has not fully returned to practice with Missouri. Asked Tuesday during his weekly media availability, Drinkwitz had only this to add: “Still rehabbing,” he said.
Hardy’s absence matters because of what he did last season. He earned All-American honors after rushing for 1,649 yards, which set a single-season program record, and scored 16 touchdowns.
With Hardy still sidelined, Jamal Roberts has taken over RB1 duties. Roberts rushed for 753 yards and six touchdowns last year, and through two games this season he has 172 yards and two touchdowns. That includes a 125-yard, one-touchdown performance in 20th-ranked Mizzou’s 38-21 road win over Kansas last Friday.
Missouri is 2-0 and returns home this Saturday to face Troy, which is also 2-0, at Faurot Field in Columbia. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
Drinkwitz said the Tigers would welcome Hardy back in a big way when he’s ready.
“The way that our quarterback throws the ball, and with the receivers and tight end groups that we have, adding another running back for us would be huge - especially one with the caliber of Ahmad Hardy,” he said on Wake Up Barstool.
“Jamal is doing a great job, but obviously having a two-headed monster would be big.”
For now, Missouri has had to lean on Roberts and a deeper-than-expected group behind him. Xai'Shaun Edwards, a transfer from FCS Houston Christian, has moved into the RB2 spot after Malae Fonoti, a transfer from FCS Montana, tore his ACL in the season-opening win over FCS Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Edwards carried 10 times for 45 yards and a touchdown against Kansas.
After Roberts and Edwards, fifth-year back Anthony Favrow is next in line at RB3, followed by freshmen Preston Hatfield and Max Warner, along with senior Brady Hultman.
In Other News...
Missouri May Have Found The Pass Rusher It Desperately Needed
Missouris defense got a welcome jolt in the Border War, and it came from a player who is still just scratching the surface of what he can become. Defensive end Daeden Hopkins was named Co-SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week after he spent the game harassing Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall, finishing with eight pressures in the matchup. For a Missouri front that has been searching for more consistent disruption, Hopkins performance stood out as the kind of edge presence that can change how an offense has to play.
Hopkins, a 19-year-old underclassman, has already piled up 12 pressures this season and sits among the nations top players in that category. Eli Drinkwitz has pointed to the work ethic and development behind the jump, noting that Hopkins has added weight while also becoming more reliable against the run. The bigger question now is whether this was a breakout night or the start of Missouri finally having the pass rusher it has been trying to find. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzou Wrestling Schedule Sets Up A Season Tigers Fans Will Track Closely
Mizzou wrestlings 2026-27 schedule is now on the books, and it gives fans a clear early look at a season that should keep interest high from start to finish. The Tigers will have seven home events on the calendar, along with a slate of road tournaments that includes stops at the Keystone Classic and the National Duals Invitational, before the Big 12 Championship arrives late in the year. The season is set to begin with the Missouri Duals on Nov. 2, giving the program an immediate chance to set the tone in front of its home crowd.
The biggest date on the wrestling calendar, though, comes in March 2027, when the NCAA Championships will be hosted by the University of Missouri in St. Louis. For a program like Mizzou, that kind of spotlight adds another layer to a schedule already built around familiar in-state interest and high-level competition. By the time the postseason rolls around, Tigers fans will have had plenty of chances to track how this group handles the grind, and whether the long run toward St. Louis looks as promising as the schedule suggests. [Read more 🡒]
Drinkwitz Knows Mizzou Has Two Problems That Could Get Exposed Fast
Missouris loss to Kansas in the 122nd Border War came with a pair of glaring issues that were hard to ignore, and they were the kind that can snowball quickly once SEC play starts to tighten the screws. Special teams had a rough day, and the secondary was uneven enough in coverage to leave head coach Eliah Drinkwitz with more than one area to clean up after a rivalry game that exposed some familiar stress points.
Drinkwitz said he took responsibility for the problems and noted that changes have already been made to address them, which matters because the schedule ahead will not offer much room to breathe. Missouri has to get sharper in a hurry, especially with cornerback play still searching for consistency and the margins getting thinner against tougher opponents. [Read more 🡒]