GRAMBLING, La. (Interstat) — Delano Franklin returned a punt 64 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, lifting Grambling to a 13-10 comeback victory over Alabama A&M in a defensive struggle on Saturday at Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium.

The Tigers, who were held scoreless until the second quarter, improved to 6-3 overall. The Bulldogs fell to 4-5.

Alabama A&M’s offense struck quickly, building a 10-0 lead in the first quarter. Quarterback JD Davis II connected with Donovan Payne on a 43-yard touchdown pass just over five minutes into the game. David Faulk added a 27-yard field goal later in the quarter to cap the Bulldogs’ scoring for the day.

Grambling’s offense struggled to find its footing but chipped away at the deficit before halftime. Kicker Josh McCormick was successful on field goal attempts from 38 and 30 yards in the second quarter, cutting the Alabama A&M lead to 10-6 at the break.

The game remained a low-scoring affair in the second half, with defenses dominating. The pivotal play came with just over seven minutes remaining in the game when Franklin fielded a punt at his own 36-yard line, found a seam and raced down the sideline for the go-ahead score.

Grambling’s defense sealed the win, recording multiple sacks and interceptions to stifle any late comeback attempt from Alabama A&M. Jalen Guillard and Blake Davis each came away with an interception for the Tigers.

Davis II finished the game 12 of 18 for 123 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions for the Bulldogs. Ryan Morrow was the primary offensive weapon for Alabama A&M, rushing for 41 yards on 11 carries.

For Grambling, quarterback Hayden Benoit managed the game effectively, completing 9 of 13 passes for 91 yards. Andre Crews led the ground attack with 38 yards on 15 carries. Keith Jones Jr. was the leading receiver with four catches for 25 yards.

The final score of 23 points fell far below the pregame over/under line of 57.5. Grambling, which had been projected by Interstat’s ELO system with a 64.3% probability to win, overcame being a 5.5-point pregame underdog.

Alabama A&M will look to rebound next Saturday when it hosts Prairie View. Grambling is set to host Bethune-Cookman next Saturday.