Missouri football head coach Eli Drinkwitz hinted that running back Ahmad Hardy would return back on Oct. 13. Now Hardy looks ready to go following his offseason shooting incident in May. But there's a catch attached to Hardy.

The backfield standout is cleared to practice entering the week of Oct. 25, per Jonathan Wagner of On3 Sunday. However, Drinkwitz added that the RB has no set timeline to return for game action.

“Our medical staff will determine his return to game action,” the coach posted on the social media website X, formerly Twitter.

Hardy suffered a gunshot wound to his lower leg. He underwent offseason surgery after, which prevented him from participating in fall practices.

His Tigers since broke into the top 25, landing at No. 23 overall per the latest AP rankings and coach's poll. Mizzou is one of nine different SEC teams nationally ranked.

But this offense needed to operate without one of the nation's top returning backs. Hardy previously tallied 1,649 yards and scoring 16 touchdowns during the 2025 season.

Article Continues Below

He proved he could immediately impact Drinkwitz's offense following his College Football Transfer Portal addition via Louisiana-Monroe. Hardy compiled 1,351 yards and scored 13 touchdowns while playing at ULM in 2024 as a freshman there.

Meanwhile, Mizzou has enjoyed some signature wins during conference play including taking down Texas A&M 27-6 earlier in October. Missouri currently sits at 5-2 overall, remaining in the picture for both the conference title game and even the College Football Playoff.

But the Mizzou schedule gets more daunting from here. Following the Halloween showdown at unranked Arkansas, the Tigers face this gauntlet: No. 11 Texas, No. 3 Georgia and No. 9 Kentucky. All before taking on 2025 CFP team Oklahoma. So Mizzou may turn to Hardy for one of those heavyweight battles.