NFC Championship: Vikes vs. Giants

Jan. 14 -- New York Giants coach Jim Fassel predicted with five weeks left in the season that his team would make the playoffs. Now, having won seven straight games including a 41-0 rout of the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game today, the Giants are going to the Super Bowl.

New York quarterback Kerry Collins threw for 381 yards and a franchise-record five touchdowns as the underdog Giants steamrolled a Vikings team that mustered 114 yards of total offense and looked clueless, lifeless and hopeless today at the Meadowlands.

The loss marks the Vikings' first shutout under Dennis Green as their playoff woes continue. Minnesota (12-6) last year lost to the St. Louis Rams 49-37 in the NFC divisional playoff game and was denied a trip to Super Bowl XXXIII when the Atlanta Falcons triumphed 30-27 in overtime in the 1999 NFC Championship game.

The Giants (14-4) advance to Super Bowl XXXV in Tampa and will play the Baltimore Ravens, who later today defeated Oakland 16-3 in the AFC Championship game.

Giants Scored and Scored and …

Collins' career — which included stints with New Orleans and Carolina — has been shrouded in controversy as the sixth-year passer also battled alcoholism. Sober and in his second season as the Giants' quarterback, Collins leads an offense that last week was criticized for an anemic effort that resulted in no offensive touchdowns in the 20-10 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional playoff game.

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Collins today silenced his critics with a force.

The Collins-led squad crackled from the opening drive: a four-play, 75-yard assault that concluded with a 46-yard scoring strike to Ike Hilliard on a mild, 37 degree day at the Meadowlands. Hilliard pulled in his second touchdown pass in the second quarter as he put forth record numbers with 10 receptions for 155 yards.

Collins quickly notched his second touchdown in two minutes when the Giants recovered a Minnesota fumble on the ensuing kickoff and he connected with Greg Comella on an 18-yard touchdown pass.