All-American running back Ahmad Hardy is back to practice with No. 23 Missouri, nearly six months after he was wounded in the leg during a shooting outside of a concert in his home state of Mississippi, though it remains unclear when he will play for the Tigers.
Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz did say Tuesday that Hardy had been a full participant in practice the previous day.
“We've always felt he would need two weeks to be back in football practices, and shape — to figure everything out. I really don't have a timeline,” Drinkwitz said. “There's never been anybody that we've experienced have to go through this. So for me to put an artificial timeline on that creates an expectation, and then disappointment to you and the fans and everybody that he can't meet something he has no control over, and I have no control over.”
The Tigers were off last week following a 31-3 loss at No. 12 Mississippi. They play rival Arkansas on Saturday.
Hardy transferred to Missouri last year after a standout freshman season at Louisiana-Monroe, and he proceeded to lead the nation with 1,649 yards rushing and set a single-season school record with 16 touchdowns. In a game against Mississippi State, he ran for 300 yards and three TDs, the third-highest rushing total in a Southeastern Conference game in the league's history.
Hardy was attending a concert in Laurel, Mississippi, in early May when he was shot in the leg as a bystander. Police made an arrest in the shooting and charged Rashodrick Harris with two felony counts of aggravated assault.
There have been few details released about the extent of Hardy's injuries. But Drinkwitz indicated Tuesday that the 20-year-old running back needed to have a metal rod inserted in his femur, the large bone in the upper part of the leg.
“There's a lot there,” Drinkwitz said. “It's a lot more challenging than maybe a hamstring or an ACL injury or something like that. The invasive nature of the recovery based off the bullet entry and the surgery that occurred, there's a lot of things that have to go right continuously to return to play football at a high level. You're having to monitor all that, from the bone healing to the wound to how does his body respond to having a rod placed in his femur. There's a lot there.
“There's not an X-ray that tells you he's ready to go."
The Tigers (5-2, 2-2 SEC) have gotten by without Hardy thanks largely to the efforts of Jamal Roberts, who backed him up a year ago but has flourished in the lead role. He ranks seventh in the Bowl Subdivision with 867 yards rushing — two of those ahead of Roberts have played an eighth game — while his eight touchdown runs put him just outside the top 10 nationally.
The Tigers were staking a claim for a spot in the College Football Playoff until their lopsided loss at Ole Miss. But with a three-game stretch against No. 11 Texas, third-ranked Georgia and No. 9 Kentucky bookended by games against Arkansas and Oklahoma, Missouri will have ample opportunities to make a statement for inclusion in the 12-team bracket.
Drinkwitz reiterated that he wasn't sure whether Hardy would play against Arkansas, Texas or even in a potential bowl game.
“Our goal is to make sure he is able to play and protect himself the best he can. That will be our guide,” Drinkwitz said. “We'll be really attuned to how he's feeling, how he feels like he can best perform, and we'll rely on him and the doctors to make decisions based on it and when he'll be available this year.”
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