College football star named No. 2 RB after 1,600-yard season

A star player at a major college football program has been named the No. 2 player at the position in the sport by a media outlet.

Missouri Tigers running back Ahmad Hardy (29) runs the ball against the Virginia Cavaliers | Travis Register-Imagn Images

A week has passed since the conclusion of the 2025 college football season. Seven months separate the College Football Playoff National Championship game and the beginning of the 2026 regular season.

The end of every college football season brings about a time of reflection around the media landscape. Some common activities include looking back on predictions made on conferences, teams and players back in July prior to the season.

Pro Football Focus released its rankings of the 101 best players in college football over the course of the 2025 season on Sunday. It ranked Ahmad Hardy of Missouri as the No. 2 running back in 2025, coming at the No. 11 overall spot in the rankings.

Indiana & Ohio State lead the way with 8 players each🔥

PFF’s Top 101 Players from the 2025 College Football Season⬇️https://t.co/1mYmZsWIse

— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 25, 2026

The 5-foot-10, 206-pounder began his college football career under Bryant Vincent at Louisiana-Monroe in 2024. The former three-star recruit made an immediate impact for the Warhawks, rushing for 1,351 yards and 13 touchdowns while catching eight passes for 72 yards.

Hardy rushed for over 100 yards in eight different games in his lone season with the Warhawks, including 200-yard outbursts against Marshall and Arkansas State. He was named Sun Belt Conference Football Freshman of the Year and received All-Sun Belt First Team honors.

Following the conclusion of Louisiana-Monroe's 5-7 season, Hardy entered the NCAA transfer portal. Hardy opted to jump to the Power Four ranks, joining Eli Drinkwitz and Missouri in the 2025 offseason.

Missouri Tigers running back Ahmad Hardy (29) runs the ball against the Mississippi State Bulldogs | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Hardy had no issue making the jump to the SEC. He was more productive with the Tigers than in his lone season at Louisiana-Monroe, rushing for 1,649 yards and 16 touchdowns while catching six passes for 22 more yards.

The Tigers saw Hardy run over 100 yards on seven different occasions in 2025. His two most productive rushing outputs were a 250-yard, three-touchdown performance against Louisiana on Sept. 13 and a 300-yard, three-touchdown performance in a win over Mississippi State on Nov. 15.

Hardy received multiple honors for his efforts in 2025. On a conference level, he was an All-SEC First Team selection by the league's coaches. Nationally, Hardy was a consensus All-America selection and a finalist for the Doak Walker award given to the best running back in college football.

Jeremiyah Love of Notre Dame was the 2025 recipient of the Doak Walker Award, coming in as the No. 1 running back and No. 3 overall player on Pro Football Focus' list.

With Love headed for the 2026 NFL draft, Hardy and fellow Doak Walker semifinalist Kewan Lacy (Ole Miss) are likely frontrunners for the award in 2026.