South Carolina Football: Gamecock star sets all-time NFL franchise record

It's kind of a big deal if a player sets an all-time record for a franchise that has been around for 88 years, but that's exactly what South Carolina football alum Ernest Jones did this weekend.

Despite missing one game with an injury and still having one more game remaining on the regular season schedule, Jones now owns the all-time record for most tackles in a single season by any player in the Rams organization.

Starting out in Cleveland in 1936, the Rams moved to Los Angeles, then to St. Louis, and then back to LA. In those 88 years, no one has had more tackles in a single season than Ernest Jones.

James Laurinaitis tackled 142 opponents twice in his career (2011 and 2012) and held sole ownership of the record, but Ernest Jones has 145 stops after picking up 13 against the New York Giants this weekend.

Having just turned 24 right around Thanksgiving, Jones isn't done piling up tackles.

Before this season started, he was named the youngest captain in the NFL when he was voted by his teammates to be the team's defensive leader. He rewarded his team for their faith in him with his record-setting season. He (barring something unforeseen) will make his first Pro Bowl, and he will play in the 2023-2024 NFL Playoffs as the Rams officially clinched a Wild Card berth with their win over the Giants this weekend.

South Carolina football fans who watched Jones play his college ball aren't surprised with his success. During his Gamecock career, he racked up 199 tackles in 26 total games played, but 183 of those came in his 21 career starts. He also was the Gamecocks' captain on defense and was an All-SEC contributor as a sophomore and junior before being taken in the 3rd round of the 2021 NFL Draft.