Rumors that football coach Joe Restic will leave Harvard next year to coach at Colgate, largely sparked by a story in yesterday's Boston Globe, remained unconfirmed by both Restic and Colgate personnel yesterday.

The Globe story quoted two unnamed sources at Colgate as having said that Restic would assume the position of head coach and athletic director at the Hamilton, N.Y. university.

Restic declined to comment on the rumors yesterday, the day of former Harvard assistant coach Carl Schutte's funeral. "On a day like today," Restic said, "it's the furthest thing from my mind."

Athletic department officials and several Harvard football players were also unavailable for comment because of the funeral.

Colgate began its search for a new head coach last week when Neil Wheelright departed for a post at Holy Cross. The university's Trustee Committee on Athletic Affairs mailed out job descriptions December 3 and set December 10 as the application deadline.

"Forty to fifty people have submitted applications," Dave Leonard, Colgate's director of sports information, said yesterday. He declined to name any individuals on the list.

Leonard added that the search committee's decision will come within the next two weeks.

Football players contacted yesterday expressed surprise at the rumor and said that Restic had never told the team of any plans to leave Harvard.

Senior All-Ivy center Carl Culig said he had "heard nothing at all" about the possibility that Restic would leave. Junior All-East quarterback Jim Kubacki said he "read about it [yesterday], and that was the first time."

Bob Donovan, assistant director of Sports Information, cast doubts on the rumor yesterday. "I really wouldn't put too much stock in the whole thing," Donovan said.

Restic spent three years at Colgate, from 1959 to 1961, as first assistant and offensive coordinator under head coach Alva Kelly, after three years as an assistant coach at Brown. He served as a coach for the Hamilton Tiger Cats of the Canadian Football League from 1962 to 1970, when the team won the Eastern Divison CFL championship.

In his five years at Harvard, Restic's squad has amassed a 30-14-1 record, highlighted by last year's Ivy League co-championship and this year's outright Ivy title.