New head football coach Tony Reno may not be making the move south from Harvard alone.

Crimson assistant coaches Joe Conlin, Dwayne Wilmot and Kris Barber ’97 are in negotiations to join the Bulldogs’ coaching staffm according to an email sent to Harvard players this weekend. Wilmot, who just completed his first season as Harvard’s defensive line coach, said that he is in the “preliminary stages” of discussions with Yale and Reno to become Yale’s defensive line coach with recruiting responsibilities.

“I have a great amount of respect for coach Reno,” Wilmot said. “I owe it to myself and my family [to consider the offer].”

Although he said he was unsure what the next stage in the hiring process would be, Wilmot added that he hoped to come to Yale’s campus in the near future and tour the facilities.

Before joining Harvard’s staff, Wilmot worked for five years as the defensive line coach for the University of Maine.

Conlin said in an email to the News that “nothing is official yet,” and declined to comment further. This fall was his first season as the Crimson offensive line coach. Previously, he worked for seven years as an assistant coach for the University of New Hampshire. At various times throughout his career, he has served as a coach for safeties as well as for both the offensive and defensive lines.

Barber spent last year as the wide receivers coach for the Crimson. He played for Yale for three seasons after transferring in from Fort Scott Community College in Kansas. He played professionally in Sweden until 2002. He served as an assistant coach at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1997 and from 2007-’10 for Division II Colorado School of Mines.

Barber could not be reached for comment.

Harvard senior Matthew Hanson, a defensive back for the Crimson football team, told the News that an email was recently sent out to all Harvard football players informing them that Reno hired the three coaches away from the Harvard staff.

He added that the email reported that the trio “left for more lucrative offers.”

Reno could not be reached for comment, and three Yale football players said they had not been informed of any updates in the hiring process.

The three assistants helped the Crimson to a 9–1 season in 2011, including an undefeated Ivy League record and a 45–7 victory over Yale in The Game.