As announced on Wednesday (Nov. 5) night, University of Toronto Varsity Blues midfielder Mehdi Essoussi has been named a U SPORTS second team all-Canadian while first-year forward Jordan Grey was recognized as a U SPORTS all-rookie.

The honours come ahead of the start of the 2025 U SPORTS Men's Soccer Championship hosted by the University of Toronto at Varsity Stadium from Nov. 6-9.

Essoussi, a third-year engineering major from Ottawa, earned all-Canadian honours for the first time in his career. Setting up a dynamic Blues offence this season from the middle of the pitch, he tallied two goals and one assist across appearances in 11 regular season contests. His presence on the defensive end was also vital to the Blues overall success, providing leadership across the entirety of the pitch. The all-Canadian honours adds to his resume which includes being a two-time OUA all-star and 2025 CPL-U SPORTS Draft pick (10^th overall by Vancouver FC).

Grey, a first-year life sciences student from Ajax, marks the sixth Varsity Blue to receive all-rookie honours since 2017. In 12 regular season appearances, he ranked second on the team and ninth in the entire OUA with six goals. This helped the Blues offence record a league-best 46 markers, lifting them to first place in the OUA East and an OUA Championship final appearance. Prior to tonight, Grey was also named OUA East rookie of the year and an OUA East second team all-star.

The complete list of 2025 U SPORTS men's soccer award winners and all-Canadians is as follows:

Most Valuable Player (Joe Johnson Award) – Mateo Brazinha, UFV
Rookie of the Year (Lou Bilek Award) – Chanan Chanda, MRU
Coach of the Year – Mike Mosher, UBC
Community Service Award – David Harrison, Sherbrooke

First Team All-Canadians
Goalkeeper – Edouard Bazinet, Sherbrooke
Defender – Doryan Soualem, UQTR
Defender – Eric Lajeunesse, UBC
Midfielder – Max Piepgrass, CBU
Midfielder – Mohammed Tolba, Dalhousie
Midfielder – Logan Rieck, StFX
Midfielder – Christian Zeppieri, York
Forward – John Moncada, Trent
Forward – Owen Antoniuk, Calgary
Forward – Mateo Brazinha, UFV
Striker – Alexandre Marcouz, UQTR

Second Team All-Canadians
Goalkeeper – Matheus De Souza, UFV
Defender – Jack Ellis, Dalhousie
Defender – Luke Green, StFX
Defender – Rodane Cato, Alberta
Defender – Fin Tugwell, Victoria
Midfielder – Jamie Nicholson, CBU
Midfielder – Maxime Bourgeois, Sherbrooke
Midfielder – Calin Calaidjoglu, Montreal
Midfielder – Mehdi Essoussi, Toronto
Midfielder – Matthew Mills, Waterloo
Striker – Amir Shirazi, McMaster

All-Rookie
Goalkeeper – Edouard Bazinet, Sherbrooke
Defender – Zakary Minka, UQTR
Defender – Jamie Wildash-Chan, UNBC
Midfielder – Yohann Hebert, CBU
Midfielder – Eliia Abu Al-Shamlat, Dalhousie
Midfielder – Marco Sciortino, York
Midfielder – Nicolas Nadeau, UBC
Forward – Jordan Grey, Toronto
Forward – Anthony Morano, York
Forward – Chanan Chanda, MRU
Striker – Kautchy Andji-Yapi, Moncton
Striker – Hugo Ruat, Sherbrooke