Four Crimson varsity players were named yesterday to the official 1961 Ivy League All Star football team. In the five previous years of formal Ivy competition, Harvard had only five All-Ivy selections.

Also, coach John Yovicsin was acclaimed coach of the year by the Boston sports writers yesterday.

Bill Swinford, Bob Boyda, Crimson men on the all-Ivy first team. They join five players from co-champion Columbia, and one each from Dartmouth and Princeton.

Columbia's selections were tackle Bob Asack, guard Tony Day, center Lee Black, and backs Tom Haggerty and Russ Warren. Dartmouth's quarterback Bill King and end Hank Large of Princeton completed the top 11 chosen by the coaches.

In the balloting, each coach nominates players from his own team but can only vote for players from the seven opposing squads.

Bill Swinford, Harvard's most valuable player this year, was the only lineman chosen on a unanimous vote. The 5-10, 180 pound guard from Oklahoma City was one of the chief reasons for the strength of the Crimson line this year. Other unanimous choices were Haggerty and King.

Fullback Bill Grana was the first sophomore chosen for the first team since Danny Sachs of Princeton turned the trick in 1957. The promising Tiger Tailback was hampered by injuries for the rest of his career and never made it again.

Grans, who comes from St. Louis, led Harvard in rushing this year, and was second in team scoring.

Halfback Bill Taylor, the Crimson's most prolific touchdown collector, was placed on the All-Ivy second team.