FOXBORO, Mass. - Laurence Maroney wanted to make it perfectly clear that when he's on the football field, he wears cleats.

He also wanted to let any doubters know that he's not afraid of contact.

And the second-year running back continued to make his personal points while helping the New England Patriots score points.

On Sunday, Maroney bulled his way to 122 yards on 25 carries, including a short second-quarter touchdown burst, in New England's 21-12 victory over the San Diego in the AFC championship game, a win that propelled the perfect Patriots (18-0) into Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Ariz., on Feb. 4.

Maroney did most of his damage in the second half, racking up 106 yards on 19 carries in his second consecutive impressive postseason showing. A week earlier Maroney also had gained 122 yards, on 22 carries, in the Pats' 31-20 triumph over Jacksonville.

While Maroney did an excellent job of finding holes by hitting the original hole and then sliding elusively away from the Chargers' defense, the 5-foot-11, 220-pounder didn't shy away from contact, something that has been a criticism of him in the past.

"A lot of people said I had tap-dance shoes, so I had to power my way through a bunch of guys [Sunday]," said Maroney. "In certain games you need certain running styles. They [the Chargers] have a physical defense. You had to put your head down and get what you could get."

His effort Sunday, and in recent weeks, has been appreciated by his teammates, who, said veteran fullback Heath Evans, have a tendency to forget that Maroney is in only his second year in the National Football League after a sterling career at the University of Minnesota.

"The youngster is doing great," said Evans. "I say that word 'great' because he has come up big in big-game situations. He's been patient, hitting the holes. The last couple of weeks his shoulder pads have gone down [to lower a boom on a defender]. He's always had that in him. We've seen him do that in college. But this is only his second year. He's young. The kid is hitting his stride at the right time."

Neither Maroney nor any other New England running back was making many strides in the running game over the first half. As a team, the Pats managed only 41 yards on the ground, but they weren't exactly trying to jam the ball down the Chargers' throats with the running game, either. New England ran the ball only nine times over the first 30 minutes.

But that changed in the second half. With Tom Brady having a not-so-Tom-Terrific game (three interceptions), the Patriots tried their running game. And with the line giving Maroney some room to get started, and Maroney doing the rest, New England rushed 22 times for 109 yards after the intermission.

"We go into every game trying to have balance on offense, and if the pass isn't working, we think we can run," said Maroney. "I don't know how many carries I'm going to get, so I just want to make sure I'm ready."

He certainly answered the call, helping New England control the ball for 21:38 of the 30 minutes in the second half. The Pats had the ball for only 11:42 in the first half.

And the net effect, said Maroney, was that the Patriots were able to wear down the Chargers.

"We just kept pounding them and pounding them, and the two-yard runs because 18- and 20-yard runs," said Maroney, whose game included one of each.

Clearly, this team knows how to find a way to win, able to find other heroes even when Brady is just so-so, at least for him.

"We have special guys," said Brady, who was 22 for 33 for 209 yards and a mere-mortal 66.4 quarterback rating.

Maroney was one of those guys Sunday, though he wasn't about to take full credit for his performance.

"I give credit to the offensive line and the receivers for holding the edge with their blocks and letting me get outside," said Maroney, who rushed for 835 yards on 185 carries this season, missing three games because of a groin injury.

But credit Maroney, evading tacklers and running through them, for helping the Pats return to the Super Bowl.