Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Tuesday's press conference at the Yale bookstore as well as the weekly Ivy League football coaches teleconference is that Tom Williams was not asked about Saturday's Yale/Columbia game marking the first time two black head coaches will square off in an Ivy League game.

Following the question and answer portion of the press conference, I brought up the subject with Williams, who joins Columbia's Norries Wilson as the only two black head coaches in Ivy League history.

"I don’t know what it means other than two young black coaches who aspire to be head coaches," Williams said. "For everybody else, it is just Yale and Columbia and how the Ivy League race plays out. That is the only thought I had about it."

My follow-up question was whether the lack of attention on this subject is a sign of progress since there was a time when a matchup of two black coaches would probably be drawing attention from national media.

"I think it is progress that it is not front page (news), just two football coaches getting their teams ready to play each other," Williams said.

Now back to the football.

Williams said the status of freshman receiver Chris Smith, who injured his knee late in Saturday's 9-0 loss to Penn, is still up in the air.

"We're still waiting to find out, just have to wait to see what the doctors tell us and how Chris feels," Williams said. "We’ll evaluate that and hopefully make a decision by game time."

The good news is that Jordan Forney is expected to play this week after missing Saturday's game as he recovered from a concussion.

Williams said that quarterback reps were split equally among Brook Hart and Patrick Witt in Tuesday's practice and it looks like Yale is back to using both quarterbacks.

Yale moved into the top spot in scoring defense among Football Championship Subdivision teams allowing an average of 11.83 points per game.

Now for a programming note, we are holding off on our weekly Yale football chats for the time being but plans are in the works for a significant online presence the week of the Yale/Harvard game.

Speaking of "The Game", Yale is looking to get out word about some changes in parking policies. Passes will need to be purchased in advance and there will be no general admission parking available.

Here's the complete release
Parking Plans Changed For Yale-Harvard Game
The Yale Athletic Department is pleased to announce a new parking and shuttle plan for the November 21 Yale-Harvard football game at Yale Bowl. The following plan has been implemented to control heavy traffic in the vicinity of Yale Bowl caused by overwhelming interest in recent Yale-Harvard football games. In addition, the Department of Athletics at Yale is confident this plan will improve the game day experience for all of its fans.

YALE BOWL PARKING OPTIONS

For the 2009 Yale-Harvard game, in order to address parking challenges and the delays that have resulted from them in the past, General Admission parking will not be available. Instead, all parking at the Bowl will require a purchased pass. Parking passes must be purchased in advance and are available on a first come first served basis. In order to purchase a parking pass, fans must purchase at least two game tickets; two purchased tickets will then entitle them to buy one parking pass. Yale students and Yale employees can purchase one parking pass by visiting the Yale Athletics Ticket Office and providing proper identification. Fans without Yale Bowl parking should plan to park downtown, in the new subsidized option described below, or make other arrangements for transportation and parking.

There are approximately 4,000 available parking spaces around the Yale Bowl and these will be sold until they have been allocated. Yale does expect to sell out the parking passes in advance. Parking passes for regular-sized vehicles are being sold for $15.00. A limited number of oversized vehicle and bus parking passes are on sale for $25.00. All parking passes can be purchased online at the
Yale Athletics Tickets website or by calling the Yale Athletics Ticket Office at (203) 432-1400. All Yale Bowl parking lots will open at 8:30 am on Nov. 21 and we recommend spectators getting there as early as possible!

DOWNTOWN NEW HAVEN PARKING OPTIONS

To accommodate fans who do not wish to park at the Bowl, or are not able to purchase a parking pass, Yale has partnered with the City of New Haven and the New Haven Parking Authority to provide parking options downtown and FREE shuttle service from two locations (
BLUE LINE and
WHITE LINE) - to transport fans to and from the Bowl. Parking spaces sold at the Bowl will help subsidize these shuttles. Parking is available for a daily rate of $3.00 from 8:00 am - 8:00 pm on Nov. 21 at two downtown garages. The Crown Street garage is located at 235 Crown Street between College and Temple Streets. The Temple Street Garage is located at 60 Temple Street and can be accessed from George Street, Temple Street or North Frontage Road. A parking map for these garages and other public parking options can be found here . Yale University visitor parking is limited but also available on game day. A map for Yale University parking can be found here.

SHUTTLE BUSES FROM DOWTOWN NEW HAVEN

Starting at 8:00 am on Nov. 21, FREE shuttle buses will bring fans from downtown New Haven to Yale Avenue at the Yale Bowl. The buses will run during and after the game from Yale Avenue to two downtown locations. The BLUE LINE is located at the Corner of Chapel and College Streets adjacent to Old Campus and the New Haven Green. The WHITE LINE is located at Payne Whitney Gymnasium (70 Tower Parkway) on the Yale campus.

A FINAL NOTE

Yale Athletics has worked closely with the City Of New Haven and the City of West Haven to manage the impact on these two communities. After careful planning and thought, the Yale Athletics Department believes the implementation of this plan will help eliminate some of the parking delays and provide a safe and enjoyable atmosphere at Yale Bowl. The game day experience of our fans and the student-athletes participating in the 126th playing of the game is of paramount importance to us. Thank you for your cooperation as we prepare to make this a special day at the Yale Bowl.