Big decision coming for one Gamecock: help the team now … or later

South Carolina football coach Will Muschamp was clear about this: Ernest Jones will play Saturday against Akron.

Whether the freshman linebacker will play in the Gamecocks’ bowl game is a much more complicated question.

Jones has already played three games, meaning he can get one more before losing his redshirt. He and Josh Belk are the only Gamecocks who still have that in doubt, and Muschamp has already said Belk will play and burn the year of eligibility.

But Jones’ status remains up in the air.

“We’ve talked about that,” Muschamp said. “It’s something I’d like to discuss with Ernest first. He’s definitely going to play this weekend, and then we’ll have a plan for the bowl game on what we want to do as far as that’s concerned.”

The 6-foot-2, 235-pound linebacker appeared destined for a redshirt after a fractured back limited him in spring ball and there was some depth at the linebacker spots. Then that depth vanished, primarily because of injuries at other spots.

First Eldridge Thompson was lost for the year. Damani Staley has been in and out of the lineup. Then attrition at the strongside spot moved Rosendo Louis out there, and he had to play more because of a woefully thin secondary.

Jones played in the opener deep in a blowout, and then didn’t see the field for eight games. He got in during the blowout of Chattanooga, and then as Louis was stuck on the outside against Clemson, Jones played 24 snaps.

He had five tackles against Clemson and Chattanooga, and forced a fumble against the Mocs.

If he doesn’t step on the field for the bowl, it’s a whole extra year on campus. That might be something he wants, or it might not be. The team might desperately need him in the bowl, but it might now as well. So the question lingers.

“That’s something we’ve discussed,” Muschamp said.