Michael Soles (November 8, 1966 – July 7, 2021) was a Canadian professional
football player who was a
fullback in the
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
(CFL). He played
college football at
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
, where he was a two-time
All-Canadian.
Early life and collegiate football career
Soles was born in
Pointe-Claire
Pointe-Claire (, ) is a Quebec local municipality within the Urban agglomeration of Montreal on the Island of Montreal in Canada. It is entirely developed, and land use includes residential, light manufacturing, and retail. As of the 2021 ce ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, on November 8, 1966.
He attended
St. Thomas High School in his hometown, where he played high school football.
He studied history and economics at
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
, earning a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
in 1989.
As a
Redman, he was honoured as a conference all-star three times and was a two-time All-Canadian.
He also rushed for a then-team record 2,231 yards in 20 regular season games. The highlight of his university football career came in the 1987
Vanier Cup
The Vanier Cup (french: Coupe Vanier) is the championship of Canadian university football. It is organized by U Sports football and is currently played between the winners of the Uteck Bowl and the Mitchell Bowl. It is named after Georges Vanier ...
, when he led the underdog McGill team to an upset 47–11 victory over the
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks among the top thre ...
Thunderbirds, who were the favourites. He rushed for 203 yards and had 2 touchdowns, and won the Ted Morris Memorial Trophy as the game MVP.
Professional career
Soles practiced with the
Pittsburgh Steelers and
Green Bay Packers. He was subsequently drafted by the
Edmonton Eskimos in the first round of the
1989 CFL Draft The 1989 CFL Draft composed of eight rounds where 64 Canadian football players were chosen from eligible Canadian universities and Canadian players playing in the NCAA.
1st round
2nd round
3rd round
17. Ottawa Rough Riders Sean ...
(fifth overall selection),
the first player from a Canadian university to be chosen that year.
This started a seven-year career with the franchise. His best season came in 1992, when he led the franchise with a career-high 656 rushing yards. He won the
Grey Cup the following year and was a Northern Division All-Star in 1995.
After becoming a free agent, Soles signed with his hometown
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...
in 1996. On November 2, 1997, he scored the franchise's first touchdown at the
Percival Molson Memorial Stadium after their re-establishment.
Paired with the all-time CFL rushing great
Mike Pringle, Soles became a blocking back, leading the way for Pringle and catching many short yardage passes.
He was honoured as a CFL All-Star in 1996 and won the
Lew Hayman Trophy
The Lew Hayman Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy, awarded to the outstanding Canadian player in the East Division. Each team in the East Division nominates a player, from which the winner is chosen. Either the winner of the Hayman troph ...
that year as best Canadian player in the East.
When he retired, Pringle paid him a supreme compliment, saying he would have never gained the yards he did without Soles' blocking.
Alouettes mourn loss of ‘a true soldier’ following passing of FB Michael Soles
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Soles finished his 11-year career with 3,007 rushing yards, 3,501 receiving yards (on 325 catches) and 45 touchdowns.
Personal life and death
Soles was married to Catherine until his death. Together, they had three children: Anthony, Matthew, and Justine. Matthew followed his father's footsteps to collegiate football when he was recruited by McGill in August 2019.
After retiring from football, Soles worked in finance. He and his family resided in the West Island
The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cla ...
of Montreal, in Beaconsfield. He was elected to the McGill University Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. Soles was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 2005, but lived beyond the 2–5 year normal life expectancy for individuals diagnosed with the disease. His former Redmen teammates established the Michael Soles Football Award in 2014, collecting nearly C$229,000 for scholarships to support McGill's varsity program.[
He died on July 7, 2021, at ]Lakeshore General Hospital
The Lakeshore General Hospital (Hôpital général du Lakeshore) (LGH) is a district general hospital in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, a suburban municipality near Montreal, Quebec. The hospital employs 1,599 employees and contains 265 beds, and serves a ...
in Pointe-Claire. He was 54 years old.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soles, Michael
1966 births
2021 deaths
Edmonton Elks players
McGill Redbirds football players
Montreal Alouettes players
Players of Canadian football from Quebec
People from Pointe-Claire
Anglophone Quebec people
Canadian football fullbacks
Neurological disease deaths in Quebec
Deaths from motor neuron disease
People from Beaconsfield, Quebec