Chris Jans provides injury update on Tolu Smith, expected timeline for return

Many around Starkville are still anxiously awaiting the return of Tolu Smith to the court for Mississippi State this season. However, based on the latest from Chris Jans, they need to slow their roll a tad considering the Bulldogs don’t even have a timetable for his return yet.

Jans was asked if he had a potential target date for Smith’s debut during his press conference on Tuesday. If it were up to him, Smith would be back as of this very moment. Since it isn’t his decision, though, all he can do is be patient like he hopes everyone else will be.

“I’ve got a target date – today. But, unfortunately, I don’t have a vote,” said Jans. “They don’t ask me when I want him back. It’s entirely up to the trainers, the doctors, and Tolu himself. He has got a progression that he has to go through. It’s still going to be a while. He has got a lot of things that he has got to do.”

It’s clear why everyone is as eager to get Smith back as they are. He remains the program’s best player after averaging 14.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game on 57.2% shooting from the field over 85 games the past three seasons. His last season further underlined that point as he posted career-highs in points at 15.7 a night. He also tied his career-best in boards at 8.5 per game.

After being an All-SEC First Team selection for those efforts in ’23-’23, Smith entered ’23-’24 as a Preseason All-SEC selection with plenty expecting to see him build on his time with Mississippi State again. Instead, he has been on the sidelines for the duration of the year with the foot injury. He may continue to be as well depending on how the next steps of his recovery go.

Smith has been doing some light ramping up after undergoing some scans last week. That means, even with some time off over the next two and a half weeks, it may still be a minute before he’s fully back.

That’s why, with a lot of eyes on this matter, Jans is tempering some expectations considering even he still doesn’t know a timeframe for Smith’s return.

“He just kind of got in the shallow end the past couple days prior to the North Texas game,” explained Jans. “We’ll reconvene today for physical practice – we were off yesterday. We’ll see where he’s at but there’s no ‘date’ that I’ve been told yet.”