Senior quarterback Austin Appleby passed for 201 yards and two touchdowns to help Florida stay atop the SEC East with a 20-7 victory over South Carolina on Saturday at Gainesville, Fla.

Appleby completed 17 of 21 passes while starting in place of injured sophomore Luke Del Rio (shoulder). Sophomore running back Jordan Scarlett contributed 134 rushing yards on 20 carries as the Gators (7-2, 5-2) won for the fourth time in the past five games.

South Carolina coach Will Muschamp experienced a disappointing return to "The Swamp" as his team totaled just 256 yards and didn't score until 6:53 remained. Muschamp was Florida's coach from 2011-14.

True freshman quarterback Jake Bentley was 18-of-33 passing for 213 yards and one interception for the Gamecocks (5-5, 3-5). Junior running back David Williams plunged in from the 1 for the South Carolina touchdown.

Florida led by 14 at halftime and increased the lead to 20-0 on two third-quarter field goals by sophomore kicker Eddy Pineiro. First, he matched his career-best effort by nailing a 54-yarder with 7:28 left in the stanza and he added a 36-yarder with 52 seconds remaining.

The Gators committed three first-half turnovers but still held a 14-0 lead at the break.

Florida moved 56 yards on four plays on their first possession as Appleby tossed a 6-yard scoring pass to sophomore tight end C'yontai Lewis. The Gators lost fumbles at the South Carolina 24 and 14-yard lines on their next two forays to keep from adding on to the lead.

Appleby threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to senior wideout Ahmad Fulwood to give Florida a 14-0 lead with 9:37 left in the first half. The Gators outgained the Gamecocks 257-104 in the half and finished with 372.