QB Magazine Athlete Feature

Ask Dillon Tandel what football means to him, and he talks about his friends.

“Football is a safe place for my friends to be themselves,” the Class of 2035 quarterback from San Francisco said, “and to get whatever is going on in their life out on that football field.” It’s a thoughtful answer from a fourth grader. It also explains the kind of leader he wants to be. Dillon doesn’t just want to lead the offense. He wants to lift his teammates up through pressure and help them deliver when it counts.

Dillon has been playing for five years, and he started at quarterback at age six. Along the way, he learned something many players don’t figure out until much later. The hardest part of youth football isn’t always on the field.

“Biggest challenge I have faced early wasn’t a football skill,” he said. “It was mental game.” Youth football, he learned, can come with plenty of outside noise and opinions from the adults around the game, especially about playing time. At one point, that noise became intense. Dillon realized he couldn’t control any of it, so he stopped trying. Instead, he focused on the things that were in his hands: his preparation, his effort, and his belief in himself.

“I made a decision early I was always going to bet on me,” he said. That mindset has stayed with him. He says every level he has played at has come with some kind of outside noise, and learning to separate himself from it at a young age has given him mental toughness beyond his years. It’s why he trusts his preparation over pressure, and why his faith in God and belief in himself have never been in question.

That same mindset shows up in what Dillon values in a quarterback: being humble, being a “dawg,” and playing relentlessly without fear.

His favorite quarterback is Patrick Mahomes, and one reason is personal. “He is double-jointed like me,” Dillon said. He also admires Mahomes as a leader and appreciates how focused Mahomes is on getting the most out of himself through training. Dillon says that’s something he wants to copy.

His own training comes from several places. Dillon works with Jay Masoli and has trained with Jenkins Elite and NorCal Pass Academy. He was ranked the No. 1 quarterback in NorCal in 2025.

Much of that work happens at home with his dad. His dad trains with him for hours every day and puts in the extra effort to help him improve. When his dad doesn’t already know a skill, he researches it and finds professional guidance. “I really appreciate how hard he works to make my dreams come true,” Dillon said.

His goals are big. This season, he wants to take his team to the Pop Warner Super Bowl. Someday, he wants to play in the NFL.

Follow Dillon: @Dillondimes7

Preparation Over Pressure

Dillon has already learned to trust his preparation more than the pressure around him. His preparation is also what gives his story substance. An upgraded QB Magazine membership lets him share that work on his own terms, through the moments he creates on the field.

A feature article can capture the parts of Dillon a box score can’t. Practice Squad includes one article each year, and Starter includes two. Dillon’s story is about more than touchdowns. It’s about a young quarterback who sees football as a safe place for his friends, a player who made up his mind early to bet on himself, and a dad who studies skills so he can help him grow. A second article can follow this season’s push toward the Pop Warner Super Bowl.

A custom graphic every month keeps the attention on football. A big throw, a key win, a playoff moment, or a new milestone in his training can each become a graphic designed around Dillon. That gives his family and teammates positive, shareable moments that are entirely about what he’s doing on the field.

Reposts help those moments reach more people. Practice Squad includes two story reposts each month on X or Instagram. Starter includes four story reposts every week across both platforms, plus a monthly wall collab that appears on Dillon’s page and QB Magazine’s at the same time. That introduces a young San Francisco quarterback to QB Magazine’s audience of quarterbacks, coaches, and football families nationwide.

Starter also offers helpful extras for a player his age. Social media consulting can help his family keep @Dillondimes7 focused on the humble, relentless, faith-driven quarterback Dillon wants to be. Top 50 QB Mag Watchlist consideration gives a quarterback ranked No. 1 in NorCal the chance to be featured among the players QB Magazine is watching. Priority for the QB Mag College Bus + Camps TOUR gives him an early look at college campuses. Both tiers include camp access, which adds to what he has learned with Jay Masoli, Jenkins Elite, and NorCal Pass Academy.

Starting in elementary school also gives Dillon plenty of time. Every article, graphic, repost, and collab from these early years stays part of his story as he gets older. By the time he reaches high school, his family will be able to look back on years of growth and see how he developed.

Dillon’s dad has spent countless hours helping him chase his dreams, and Dillon has already learned to block out the noise. A membership helps preserve what matters most in this story: a young quarterback who loves his teammates, trusts his preparation, and keeps betting on himself.

More info: quarterbackmagazine.com/memberships