The wilderness and beauty of Montana Ellen J. Wolf and her husband went on a hiking vacation in Glacier National Park in Montana in June. She said they had not planned to hike in the Two Medicine area, but they were so eager, they “changed into our hiking clothes in the car, and for our first hike of the trip climbed 2,500 feet in 3 miles up the rugged scree on the side of the mountain,“ the Richmond resident said. “About halfway up, we were rewarded with this view of Two Medicine Lake and Rising Wolf Mountain.“

BUTTE, Mont. (AP) — A small plane crashed Sunday as it approached an airport in Montana, killing 17 people, including several children, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said.

It was fitting. With Montana trailing 24-7 and facing a fourth-and-7 late in the fourth quarter, Grizzlies quarterback Cole Bergquist stepped up in a collapsing pocket and attempted to force a first-down pass into traffic. The ball never crossed the line of scrimmage.

The University of Richmond captured its first Division I national championship Friday night by beating Montana 24-7 in the Football Championship Subdivision title game.

The Richmond Spiders closed the third quarter just as they did the second quarter, holding a 21-0 lead in the Football Championship Subdivison title game over the University of Montana.

Montana is big-sky country, the fourth-largest state in terms of square miles, 147,046, but 44th in population with just 957,861 people in all that space. Romanticists seeking room to roam want to visit Montana.

When: 8 p.m.
  On the air: TV—ESPN2; radio—WXGI (950), WBBT (107.3) 7 p.m. air time

Richmond needs its defensive players to operate as highly mobile agents vs. Montana tonight in the FCS title game. If they don’t, the Grizzlies’ offensive line is big enough to smother them.

University of Richmond football fans are flocking to Chattanooga, Tenn., for tomorrow night’s FCS title game. The high-style award goes to a group that includes a couple of former Spiders. Rafe Wilkinson and Troy Gray, ex-linebackers, are among those renting an eight-seat jet. They are flying into Chattanooga tomorrow afternoon for the 8 p.m. game involving UR and Montana and are scheduled to be back in Richmond by 2 a.m. Saturday. A representative from aviation charter and management business Martinair Inc. yesterday approximated the rental cost for a small aircraft for such a trip at $8,000.

Donte’ Boston? The Varina High School graduate unexpectedly surfaced as a hot and productive target Saturday during University of Richmond’s dramatic scoring drive in the FCS semifinals at Northern Iowa. Boston stepped in for injured L.C. Bird graduate Kevin Grayson, an All-Colonial Athletic Association pick. Is either guy available for tomorrow night’s FCS title game involving UR (12-3) and Montana (14-1)?

University of Richmond football coaches spend their days analyzing Montana video. Perhaps they should just call Lawrence Sidbury. Last school year, UR’s senior defensive end developed a computer system that predicts plays based on past play-calling.

HARRISONBURG - James Madison coach Mickey Matthews lost his star quarterback late in the first half of Friday night’s Football Championship Subdivision semifinal game. His defense was unable to contain the well-balanced attack of fourth-seeded Montana for most of the evening. But Matthews was adamant about what cost his top-seeded Dukes most dearly in a 35-27 loss that ended their season.

Unfortunately for the top-seeded Dukes last night, Rodney Landers went down with a sprained ankle late in the first half, and with him went JMU’s chances of reaching next week’s championship game.

Fans of the James Madison University football team received something they neither wanted nor expected: a long, and by night’s end encouraging, glimpse into the future. Late in the second period of last night’s FCS playoff semifinal game, shorn of Dudley Award-winning quarterback Rodney Landers, the Dukes had no alternative but to turn to redshirt sophomore Drew Dudzik.

About 90 elementary school students in Montana have started a series of rabies shots after a parent let them touch a dead bat that was later confirmed to be diseased. The mother of two students gave presentations in five classrooms last week and allowed the children to touch the dead bat. She offered each student who touched the bat a sanitary wipe.