For any varsity sports program to find success, it must identify the type of players and people it will take to establish as building blocks and foundational pieces on and off the field - individuals who can shoulder the burden of elevating the standard of play on the pitch with the character required to lift teammates up with them.
Over the course of five seasons with the UNBC Timberwolves soccer team, Cody Gysbers established himself as a bedrock of consistency, leadership, dedication, and skill, making him an incredibly deserving indictee in the 2025 class of the Timberwolves Wall of Honour.
A graduate of Reynolds Secondary in Victoria, Gysbers was a product of the Vancouver Island Wave program, as well as the Victoria Highlanders pipeline. In his formative years he was coached by Steve Simonson, who recognized Gysbers’ immense potential and competitive drive. When Simonson was named head coach of the UNBC Timberwolves program in 2015, he knew Gysbers was a player and person he wanted to add to the team.
“I was fortunate to get to know Cody when he was 10 years old, working with him for many years prior to going to UNBC. He was a bit of a late developer physically, but that translated to him becoming an incredibly smart and technical player,” said Simonson. “I always felt that he was a top player, and his trajectory as a youth was massive as a player and as a person. I knew he would be a top player at the U SPORTS level because of his intelligence and competitiveness.”
Gysbers committed to UNBC in April of 2016, joining a program that was coming off a 1-10-1 season in the highest level of university sport in Canada, but had started to assemble a mix of talented players. In the Timberwolves’ official release of his commitment to the program, the young midfielder gave Timberwolves fans a hint of his focus and will to win.
“I want to play where the size of the school or the physical location doesn’t matter,” he said in 2016. “I want to play with a group of guys who believe everything is possible. Who believe a national trophy is possible.”
It didn’t take long for Gysbers to make an impact on the Timberwolves. In 2016, playing alongside fellow Victoria rookies Jonah Smith and Aidan Way, he started all 15 games for UNBC, and the team improved to 4-10-2 in the Canada West standings. Recording a pair of assists, the first-year midfielder impressed his veteran teammates with his poise, demeanour, and overall ability to meet the moment.
“When Cody came in as a rookie, he was one that we were all really excited about. We could all see there was a lot of potential there,” said longtime teammate, Francesco Bartoillo. “Steve put him in as a holding midfielder and, right away, you could see he was a bright player. He understood the game, he could pick a pass, was calm on the ball, and could absolutely ping it. He was, most importantly, not afraid of the compete level in Canada West. It didn’t matter who he was up against – from a first-year to a fifth-year vet, he was competing. He proved, right away, that he not only belonged, but he was going to be a game-changer for our program.”
In 2017, the TWolves took another step. Recording a 5-5-6 record, UNBC set new program records for goals, wins, and points in a season, and qualified for the conference playoffs for the first time since making the leap to the U SPORTS level. Gysbers expanded his role again, becoming a go-to player in set situations, using his immense ability to place the ball to great success. The second-year midfielder again started all 15 games he appeared in, scoring three goals, and winning the Golden Boot as the team’s top goal scorer.
“Cody always possessed a great insight into the game. He was strong technically, but it was his composure and intelligence that allowed him to use that technique so effectively,” said Simonson. “Even as a young player, if he ever got nervous, he sure didn’t show it. He was calm, and always ready to take on the challenge in front of him. It was never about him.”
As the Timberwolves program continued to take strides and mature into a dangerous team in the conference, it seemed to be no coincidence that Gysbers’ own development mirrored that of the program. The once-small but determined midfielder was evolving into a physical force that, when combined with his immense technique and understanding of the game, was a handful for any player in Canada West.
In 2018, again Gysbers played a major role in another step forward for Simonson’s team. Starting all 15 games, he helped UNBC to the first winning record in team’s history, going 5-4-6, setting program records for goals and points. He chipped in a pair of goals, but was asked to play defense; a role he took on and flourished in alongside CW All-Star Gordon Hall. Inexplicably, the Timberwolves missed the conference playoffs on a tiebreaker, but it set the team’s sights on becoming a program with even higher aspirations.
“Defending alongside Cody, it was apparent that his ability to anticipate the attackers’ next move was what set him way above the rest of us,” said teammate Mitch Linley, who played in the defensive third alongside Gysbers. “He truly didn’t have as much size or speed as some of our teammates, but he was so intelligent in how he got the opposition off-balance to dominate aerial duels and consistently control the offside line at the perfect time, every time. He was exceptional. He had the grit to win the ball the first time, or to tear the jersey off your back without the referee even noticing.”
Unfortunately, in 2019, Gysbers was confronted with an ankle injury that forced him to miss the entire campaign, halting his momentum and leaving a substantial hole in the Timberwolves roster. The team would go 4-8-3, missing the playoffs and lacking Gysbers’ poise, leadership, and will to win.
“We missed him. Cody was the type of teammate who, when he was on the field, you could take a breath and not worry. His IQ on the field was phenomenal, and he was really the glue throughout my UNBC career,” said childhood friend and UNBC teammate, Michael Henman. “We were just always better when he was playing. He was an absolute necessity for us and our chances of winning went up exponentially with him playing defense for us.”
His return, along with the entire conference schedule, was spoiled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. League play was cancelled, extending an excruciating period of missed soccer for Gysbers.
According to Henman, his longtime teammate’s appetite for soccer was greater than anyone he has ever met, and that two-year stint without wearing a UNBC jersey only made that fire burn with more intensity.
“It’s all we cared about, whether it meant reflecting on past games or strategizing about future matches. I would actually have to tap out of conversations sometimes, because no one could stay on the topic of soccer as long as Cody could,” said Henman. “He would talk all day and all night about soccer if he could. It speaks to his knowledge and intelligence. He is my go-to example of someone who is completely invested in the game, completely invested in his teammates, and completely invested in the success of his team.”
Despite graduating from UNBC, the desire to continue to compete for the Timberwolves was strong enough that he enrolled in Northern BC again, and returned to the Green & Gold for a fourth season. However, it was again the injury to his ankle that was severe enough to keep the ultra-competitive Gysbers out of the lineup most of the season.
He would play just six games, starting all six, and scoring a pair of goals. And for his efforts, impact, and ability, he was named UNBC’s Top Defensive Player on the heels of a 2-5-5 campaign.
That summer, facing the looming final season of his university career, Gysbers set his sights on making history at UNBC. He and many of his Timberwolves teammates played that summer in League1 BC for the Victoria Highlanders, creating chemistry and developing an innate understanding of one another’s tendencies. The results that fall were historic.
“We don’t have that season without Cody. His influence on that year really started when he came up to Prince George for preseason. People outside the program didn’t see the grind he went through to captain us to that historic year,” said teammate, Gregor Smith. “He missed a year with ankle surgery. He had to move back to Victoria for COVID. He graduated and came back to UNBC for two more years. He was our captain. He was our leader. Crucial is an understatement. He helped recruit, mentor rookies, house players, and kept the team together. He was special.”
The 2022 season, was in fact, special. Captained by Gysbers, the Timberwolves went 8-5-3, setting program records for goals, points, and wins. Their 34 goals scored were top-five in Canada, and the +14 goals for/against ratio was by far the best in team history. Gysbers scored a goal and added three assists, and was sensational in his ability to break up plays at one end, and create offensive opportunities at the other.
“The best on-ball defender I have ever played with, by a mile,” said Linely. “He was able to carry the ball past attackers sprinting at him and then distribute a perfect long ball to our forwards. He was utterly untouchable. He could communicate, he was composed and consistently won every ball. His presence allowed the rest of us to play forward with the utmost confidence that there was a defensive monster covering our backs.”
For his efforts, he was named a Canada West First Team All-Star, and earned UNBC’s Best Defensive Player Award, putting the cap on a historic run in TWolves colours.
“I just was incredibly lucky to start my career playing beside one of the (best) players and leaders in UNBC history,” said Hagon Kim, who was in his rookie season alongside his senior teammate. “I looked up to him as a player and as a leader. Always disciplined. Always smart. Led by example. Cody was not always the loudest, but he set an amazing example on and off the pitch. Every one of us followed him with zero doubts, because he genuinely cared about every one of us.”
Gysbers concluded his career top-10 in program history in games, starts, goals, assists, and points, and is the only player in UNBC history to win both the Golden Boot Award and Best Defensive Player Award. However, beyond the numbers, it was, perhaps, his leadership and dedication that will truly stand the test of time.
A program-changer, a culture-setter, an unrivaled defender, and one of the greatest leaders in UNBC men’s soccer history. It’s tough to put Gysbers’ impact on UNBC into words, so perhaps a fellow Timberwolf can sum it up best.
“Cody bled green and gold. His ability on the pitch speaks for itself. He was, truly, one of the best defenders in Canada West. But it was how he did whatever was required of him, and how he found a way to perform at the level he did that sets him apart,” said Bartolillo. “Cody felt this responsibility to the program and to his teammates.
“This is a no-brainer. From the moment Cody arrived in Prince George to the day he left, he embodied what it meant to be a Timberwolf. His commitment, leadership, and impact are undeniable. Now he takes his rightful place on the Timberwolves Wall of Honour.”
