`DIALED IN' PARACLETE LINEBACKER LAMBERT DUAL THREAT IN RUN TO TITLE GAME.

Byline: Gideon Rubin Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Keith Lambert hates the spotlight and doesn't particularly like talking about himself.

``I'm just another guy, there's not much else to say,'' he said of his role on Paraclete High's football team. ``I just do my job.''

But as of late, he's been anything but ``just another guy.'' Lambert, who plays on both sides of the ball and kicks off for the Spirits, has emerged as the team's unheralded star.

He starts at inside linebacker and tight end. He leads the team with 81 tackles and has two sacks. The junior has caught six passes for 115 yards with two touchdowns in a run-oriented offense in which his primary responsibility is to block.

Paraclete will be counting on Lambert to help the team every way he can when it plays Montclair Prep of Van Nuys in the Southern Section Division XII championship game Saturday. The Spirits are seeking their fifth consecutive state sectional title.

A student of the game, Lambert is always watching. learning, taking mental notes. He tries to pick things up a tendency here or a better kicking technique there.

``I guess you can say I'm an observer,'' he said. ``That probably helps me a lot.''

It's a habit he got into at a young age, when his father, Clark, introduced him to the art of watching.

Lambert recalled of his father: ``He always told me: 'Watch this guy, see what he does different from you, watch him. Is he better? Maybe you're better than him, but maybe he does one thing better than you, so if you try his way you can be better at both.''

That philosophy has carried over into other parts of his life. Lambert is always looking for an angle, whether it's a better way to stuff the run or a better way to tackle homework assignments.

He tries to learn from a soccer teammate who's ranked second in his senior class academically.

``I just try and see what he does when he comes home,'' Lambert said. ``Does he do his homework first thing? Or does he eat or take a nap first?''

His dedication to learning hasn't gone unnoticed.

``He knows a lot about the game, he studies the game,'' teammate Andy Watts said.

A multisport athlete - he also plays on the soccer and baseball teams - Lambert believes diversity in sports is the key to his versatility in football. His sister Christine was also a multisport athlete at Paraclete. She is now at University of Connecticut on a volleyball scholarship.

As a sophomore, Lambert played outside linebacker, a position that requires more speed than strength. He and Watts, also a junior, replaced a bigger and stronger inside-linebacking tandem of Ruben Tovar and Mike Moore.

The 6-foot-1 190-pound Lambert said proper technique is especially important for him. And so he watches college and professional games, with an eye for finding a better way to do his job always in the back of his mind.

Wherever Lamberts happens to be playing, he seems to have success. Uniquely versatile, Lambert could be an asset in the secondary, or on the line, according to defensive coordinator Ken Nelson.

``He's dialed in,'' Nelson said. ``He always knows exactly what he needs to do, and the fact that he's able to do so many things gives us a lot of flexibility.''

Lambert enjoys playing on both sides of the ball.

``It kind of helps me. When I'm playing offense, I notice tendencies of the linebackers and that gives me a little bit of an advantage,'' he said. ``I don't like sitting during games; when I'm playing anything, I like being on the field all the time.''

Paraclete coach Jeff Cortez has high regard for Lambert's dedication and his ability.

``He has oodles of athletic potential, still, and he's a kid who's just going to continue to get better the more he plays,'' Cortez said.

Lambert's smarts are helpful on offense, where remembering routes and plays is crucial. However, it's on defense where his intelligence and field awareness are most obvious, Cortez said.

``As an inside linebacker, he recognizes formations and sets and he can then translate that into what the opponent is going to run at him and he can dissect that quicker than maybe some other kids can, or do.''

Lambert is committed to trying to be better, and to the learning process he knows he has to go through to get there.

``I'll never say no to teaching,'' he said. ``I might, when somebody's telling me something and I'm a little frustrated, sound like I'm ignoring them, but I'm always listening.''

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KEITH LAMBERT

Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer