Former South Carolina Gamecocks basketball player Eric Cobb has been arrested in Florida for allegedly killing his mother.
Authorities from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office responded to a call on Monday, February 10, where they discovered 51-year-old Erika Winford with a gunshot wound. She was found unresponsive, wrapped in a blanket and towels in the backyard.
Cobb, 28, was taken into custody as he attempted to leave the residence. He has been charged with second-degree murder and denied bond, according to jail records.
A Jacksonville native, Cobb was a highly regarded basketball prospect in high school and began his college career at the University of South Carolina. However, he played only one season with the Gamecocks before being dismissed from the team due to an arrest involving shooting at a car with a BB gun near downtown Columbia.
During the 2015-2016 season at South Carolina, he appeared in 24 games, averaging 1.1 points and 1.9 rebounds per game, with his best performance being a six-point game against Oral Roberts. Following his dismissal, Cobb played at Chipola College in Florida before transferring to the University of Connecticut for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons, where his playing time was limited.
CBS affiliate Action News Jax reported that Cobb had been charged with assaulting an officer and resisting arrest in October 2023. Additionally, an arrest report revealed that days before her death, Winford had expressed concerns about her son, stating he was “possessed” and needed medication.
