Quick Kicks: Richmond vs. Montana

Final score: Richmond 24, Montana 7

For starters: Two big plays from Richmond's offense gave the Spiders an early lead, and the Grizzlies never seemed to recover. Junior quarterback Eric Ward scrambled for 18 yards on a third-and-15, then caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from fullback John Crone three plays later.

Turning point: A chop-block penalty nullified a nice passing play and backed Montana deep into its own territory early in the second quarter, and freshman Ken Wood complicated matters with a low, 34-yard punt that Richmond's Derek Hatcher returned 21 yards to the Grizzlies' 34. Josh Vaughan's spectacular, tackle-breaking 5-yard touchdown run three plays later gave the Spiders a 14-0 lead.

Star of the game: Ward, Vaughan and Richmond's offense might steal most of this morning's headlines, but UR senior defensive end Lawrence Sidbury may have made the game's biggest individual impact. The senior had four sacks, and he knocked down battered Montana quarterback Cole Bergquist on several other occasions.

The big picture: Stages get no bigger at the FCS level than Finley Stadium in mid-December, and the Spiders seized the moment in their first appearance in the national championship game. UR graduate Mike London built on former head coach Dave Clawson's foundation and took the Spiders to the top.

Here's some bad news for the rest of the FCS: Sixteen of Richmond's 22 starters last night were not seniors.

Quotable: "They really kind of did to us what we've been doing to people lately. In the first half, they pounded the rock pretty well . . . and we didn't stop it real well," Grizzlies coach Bobby Hauck said of the Spiders, who finished with a 208-39 advantage in rushing yards.

Go figure: Zero. That was the combined number of Crone career touchdown passes and Ward career scoring catches before last night. It was also the number of fullback passing plays Richmond had called this season before that scoring connection.

- Wes Rucker