Freshman Quarterbacks bond over Unique position

(Photo: Maya Diaz/WCSN)

As the Arizona State football team begins its spring camp, two players have been trying to find their footing in the program. That pair comprises two freshman quarterbacks, Cameron Dyer and Michael “Butter” Tollefson.

Dyer, a 4-star recruit per 247 Sports, and Tollefson, a 3-star, were early enrollees in ASU’s 2025 recruiting class. Despite drastically different high school careers, both have bonded in the early goings of their time in Tempe.

“We have a couple classes together, so we’re able to talk about assignments and stuff on and off the field,” Dyer said. “Just helping make that transition a little bit easy.”

Having two true freshman quarterbacks is a unique position for the Sun Devils. Often times the quarterback room may be pitted against each other to fight for the lone starting spot. However, with rising redshirt sophomore Sam Leavitt cemented as the starter and redshirt senior Jeff Sims as the backup for 2025, Dyer and Tollefson are trying to soak up as much as possible from their two veterans.

“They both helped me, whether it’s on the field, throwing sessions, or just pushing me in conditioning and the film room,” Tollefson said. “I’m super grateful for both of them and I just hope to take the best things from both of them.”

Through the early spring practices, Tollefson has seen reps with the third team, while Dyer is returning from injury. Offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo knows transitioning to college football can be difficult for anyone, especially a quarterback.

“I can see smoke coming out of (Tollefson’s) helmet sometimes, which I’ve been there,” Arroyo said. “He’ll be just fine. He’s got some ways to go in regards to picking everything up.”

Arroyo’s experience as an offensive coordinator, and college quarterback, leaves him in a great spot to develop these two young players. His offense served as an alluring aspect for Dyer, as he believes “his offense fits my style.”

Dyer’s natural athleticism and 6-foot-3 frame led to teams looking into whether he was interested in playing another position such as wide receiver or safety. At La Cueva High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Dyer showed his athleticism as a three-sport athlete, playing basketball, track and field, and football giving him lessons on being an athlete.

“I feel like playing those three sports, going from sport to sport requires a lot from my body,” Dyer said. “Being on top of my game all the time, and just competing in different areas of life.”

Dyer used these teachings to contribute to three varsity teams. On the court, he averaged 11.1 points per game in his junior season and played varsity all three years. For his school’s track team, he ran both the 100-meter and 200-meter races but was best at the long jump. Dyer finished in the top four of New Mexico’s 5A division in his sophomore and junior seasons for the long jump.

However, the gridiron is where Dyer shined. The star quarterback glittered as he earned back-to-back New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year honors in his junior and senior seasons. Over the two years, Dyer had over 4,000 passing yards, 46 touchdown passes and led his team to two consecutive state championship game appearances.

The La Cueva Bears beat Cleveland High School to claim the New Mexico 6A championship in 2023. However, in 2024, Cleveland avenged the prior year’s loss as Dyer tore his ACL and LCL. Dyer underwent surgery and is expected to return to full action by September.

“Mentally it’s tough. You want to be out there with the guys throwing touchdowns, scoring touchdowns,” Dyer said. “But I’m still able to be around them, still able to do work out in the living room.”

The support of the Sun Devils’ coaching staff has not only helped Dyer rebound from a devastating injury but also adjust to college life. As for Tollefson, his transition to Tempe was made even easier, as he was able to be around the team for multiple practices in 2024.

“It was definitely beneficial, just seeing how practice moves and the speed of it,” Tollefson said. “Especially those two weeks I got to come for bowl practice, I felt that put me a good amount of steps ahead.”

Tollefson developed a better relationship with the ASU staff after he moved to the valley for his senior year of high school He attended Mountain Pointe High School in Tempe, one of three different high schools that he played for.

He started high school at San Juan Hills High School in California, playing his freshman and sophomore years there. Tollefson tallied over 1500 passing yards in his sophomore season earned him an offer from Kenny Dillingham. It didn’t take long for him to decide to come to ASU, announcing his commitment in June 2023, the summer before his junior year.

For his junior season, Tollefson transferred to JSerra Catholic. Ahead of his senior year, Tollefson again transferred to another California high school, finally Tustin High School. However, his transfer waiver was denied, leading him to move to Tempe a year early.

“It helped me just learn a whole bunch of different offenses,” Tollefson said. “It’s not the regular way, but I think it all worked out.”

For two players with bright futures, and very different backgrounds, Dyer and Tollefson have come together through their short time in Tempe. Being a quarterback can be one of the lonelier positions, but for these two being together seems to only be helping.

“We’ve been in the film room together because we both had to dig into the playbook,” Tollefson said. “We help each other out in multiple different ways and I think it’s cool just to try to see us help build each other up.”