Mizzou Earns Transfer Commitment of Running Back Xai'Shaun Edwards

The Tigers are adding some young depth to their running back room to place alongside Ahmad Hardy and Jamal Roberts.

Sep 13, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Houston Christian Huskies quarterback Jake Weir (16) hands the ball off to running back Xai'Shaun Edwards (24) against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

The Missouri Tigers are adding even more young talent to their running back room, this time in the form of Houston Christian running back Xai'Shaun Edwards. He spent two years with the Huskies and redshirted his first season, leaving him with three years of eligibility.

Missouri has landed a commitment from Houston Christian running back transfer Xai’Shaun Edwards, his agency @lvrgfootball tells @CBSSports.

Was a first-team FCS Freshman All-American this season. Ran for 1,019 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. pic.twitter.com/2x4DogFhT8

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) January 7, 2026

The League City, Texas, native rushed for 1,019 yards and 12 touchdowns on 194 carries in his first true season as the starting running back for Houston Christian, averaging 5.3 yards per carry. He also racked up 106 receiving yards on 18 catches.

Edwards was the first 1,000-yard rusher in Houston Christian's history, making him a finalist for the FCS Jerry Rice Award for the most outstanding offensive player. He also set the single-season rushing touchdown record for the school.

The new Missouri running back was a three-star recruit in the class of 2024, ending the recruiting cycle as the No. 1,794 player in the country and No. 134 running back. He was also No. 258 in Texas. Edwards had a surprising amount of Power 4 interest out of high school for a player who took the FCS route, picking up offers from Oregon, Missouri, Texas Tech and Houston. He also had offers from Texas State, UTSA and Tulsa.

Sep 13, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Houston Christian Huskies running back Xai'Shaun Edwards (24) runs for a touchdown against Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive back Jeremiah Charles (25) during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Eli Drinkwitz and the Tigers were the first school to offer Edwards on Jan. 27, 2022, followed by UTSA and Incarnate Word months later.

Missouri hosted Edwards on a visit on Monday, per Matt Zenitz. He was slated to take a trip to see the California Golden Bears on Thursday, but didn't make it out of his visit with the Tigers.

Edwards is certainly a big addition for the Tigers, but arguably no two announcements were bigger for the future of Missouri football than the re-signing of sophomore running backs Ahmad Hardy and Jamal Roberts. The water was never too murky in terms of their returns to Columbia, but having it in writing makes it much sweeter.

This makes the transfer of Edwards to Missouri that much better. Not only are the Tigers adding another 1,000-yard rusher to the room, but he's young and complements Hardy and Roberts. He'll also be competing with incoming freshman Maxwell Warner, who was a three-star recruit in the class of 2025.

It's not unlikely that the Tigers add another backfield member through the transfer portal, or even take a flyer on a 2026 recruit. The Tigers did reach out to three-star D'Antae Sheffey and, as of now, he's still expected to take an official visit Friday.

To keep up with all of the offseason movement for Missouri, follow our offseason tracker.