Ahmad Hardy Breaks Mizzou Program Record

Ahmad Hardy's incredible debut season with Missouri will officially be cemented in the program record books.

In the fourth quarter of the Gator Bowl against No. 19 Virginia, Hardy set the single-season program record for rushing yards, surpassing the record Cody Schrader set in 2023.

Going into the game, Hardy was 67 yards away from Schrader's record. He earned a large chunk of that on his second carry of the game, breaking through contact at the line of scrimmage to rush for 43 yards on Missouri's first drive of the game. A 12-yard rush on Missouri's fourth drive of the second half put him over the mark, putting him over the 1,627 yards he needed. After the drive, Hardy had made his way to 1,645 yards on the year.

Hardy's big run put Missouri in position to take a 7-0 lead by way of a five-yard rush from Jamal Roberts.

Sept 27, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers running back Ahmad Hardy (29) looks to his team after a touchdown in a game against UMass at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. | Amber Winkler/MissouriOnSI

Missouri will have to rely on Hardy and the run game against Virginia, as the Tigers' passing attack is shorthanded. Two of Missouri's starting receivers — Joshua Manning and Marquis Johnson — opted out of the game after announcing plans to enter the transfer portal. Tight end Brett Norfleet is missing the game as he recovers from an injury procedure. Additionally, true freshman Matt Zollers is in at quarterback after starter Beau Pribula announced plans to enter the transfer portal.

With Hardy making his way to the top of the leaderboard, each of the top three of the highest rushing totals in a season in program history have come from running backs in the Eli Drinkwitz era. All three were finalists for the Doak Walker Award, which recognizes the best running back in college football.

Tyler Badie first set the record in 2021, rushing for 1,604 yards. Schrader set it in 2023 with 1,627, and now Hardy has broke it again.

Hardy earned plenty of national recognition in his sophomore season, being named a consensus All-American. Hardy's humble southern roots from Mississippi showed when he was asked about the consensus all-american status.

"I know All-American supposed to be like the best players all around or something like that," Hardy said in a press conference on Dec. 16. "So I feel like it's pretty good."

He transferred to Missouri after a standout freshman season at Louisiana-Monroe, where he rushed for 1,351 yards and 13 touchdowns on 237 carries.

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