Timber Creek (11-0) is the No. 1 seed and the No. 2 team in The Inquirer's South Jersey rankings. The Chargers are seeking the program's first sectional title.
Hammonton (9-2) is the No. 2 seed and the No. 7 team in the rankings. The Blue Devils are seeking their sixth sectional title and second in Group 3.
"We're going to have to play our best," Hammonton coach Pete Lancetta said. "We know how good [the Chargers] are. What do they have, four or five Division I players?"
Timber Creek junior defensive linemen Greg Webb and Dajuan Drennon have a combined 15 offers from Division I programs, but Lambert is the Chargers' most highly recruited player.
Lambert probably is South Jersey's most highly recruited player. The 6-foot-2, 240-pound linebacker, who has narrowed his college choices to Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Iowa, and Northwestern, said Wednesday that he plans to make a college decision on Christmas Day.
Nebraska coach Bo Pelini visited Timber Creek's practice on Wednesday.
Lambert sat out Timber Creek's last two games because of an ankle injury. He hurt his right ankle in a Nov. 11 playoff game against Lacey Township.
"It was bad at first," Lambert said. "I was worried I might not be able to play again [this season]. But it feels a lot better. I'm ready to go."
Lambert is the leader of a dominating Timber Creek defense that also features Webb, Drennon, senior defensive tackle Jamil Stephenson, and junior cornerback Eric Church.
The Chargers offense is led by senior quarterback Calvin Lowe, who ran for one touchdown and passed for another in a fourth-quarter comeback in a 13-3 victory over Triton on Thanksgiving, as well as junior running back Khalil Pierce, who has 820 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Hammonton is coming off a 32-3 loss to crosstown rival St. Joseph on Saturday. Lancetta decided to pull his starters from the game at halftime, in a nod to the importance of the sectional final.
