Eli Drinkwitz provides update on health of Ahmad Hardy
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Eli Drinkwitz had some promising news to share about Ahmad Hardy, days after Mizzou‘s star running back was shot at a concert early Sunday morning.
“I can tell you Ahmad Hardy has been discharged from the hospital. He’s back in (Missouri Orthopedic Institute) and he’s working on a recovery,” Drinkwitz said at a Mizzou-hosted event in Dallas on Tuesday. “The timetable for that recovery is not determined. We’ll take it day by day.”
Hardy, the SEC’s leading rusher in 2025, was projected as a first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft. Right now, that’s the furthest thing from his and everyone else’s mind, as his No. 1 priority is getting better.
While there’s no timeline for Hardy’s return, Drinkwitz added that it’s not really guaranteed that Hardy will even be back in 2026. That depends on the extent of the injuries.
“When you’re dealing with elite athletes, getting back healthy and getting back to elite status is always a little bit tricky in some of these situations,” Eli Drinkwitz said. “There is an opportunity that he could be back this year. There’s an opportunity that he couldn’t be back this year. So we won’t know those answers for a few weeks.”
According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Hardy’s “goal” is to return to the field “this year.”
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
