In what veteran White House observers said was an extension of the administration's cautious approach to superpower conflicts, President Bush yesterday refused to predict a winner in today's Game.

The President, who has been dogged by the "wimp factor," did not back his alma-mater Yale about, which will take to the gridiron today against its traditional cold war rivals from Harvard.

The President doesn't comment on football games, said a White House spokesperson. Meanwhile, the President offered comment on the other superpower conflict currently raging by sending a cable to President of the Soviet Union Mikhail S. Gorbachev expressing hopes for "a calm and peaceful period of change" in Eastern Europe.

Gorbachev could not be reached for comment on the Harvard-Yale game.

Some members of Congress were quick to take exception with the President's tight-lipped stance. Sen. Albert Gore Jr. '69 (D-Tenn.) shot back: "I predict Harvard will score 16 points in the last 38 seconds, but this time Harvard will win outright."

Gore's comment on last moment scoring was an allusion to The Game of 1968, in which Harvard scored 16 points in the final moments to beat Yale, 29-29.

Forecasters predict that today's Game will be a cold war. Temperatures are expected to be in the 30s with a chance of flurries.