Jim Harbaugh’s Crazy Reason for His Players Not to Eat Chicken: 'It's a Nervous Bird'

Not only is chicken a "nervous bird," but it's also apparently responsible for "some type of sickness" in the human population.

Michigan's ever-eccentric Jim Harbaugh doesn’t think his players should be eating chicken, but not for any reason you’ve ever heard before. 

A feature on Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson from Bleacher Report’s Matt Hayes contains the story, as told by former Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight.

"Early in his Michigan tenure, Harbaugh pulled Speight aside and told him not to eat chicken, a protein that is considered fairly safe by nutritionists," Hayes wrote. "When Speight asked why, Harbaugh said, 'because it's a nervous bird.'"

The fowl’s anxiety isn’t Harbaugh’s only gripe with chicken, though. 

"He thinks some type of sickness injected its way into the human population when people began eating white meats instead of beef and pork," Speight, now at UCLA, told Bleacher Report. "And he believes it, 100 percent."

Speight says statements like these are just part of "the Harbaugh Experience."

The former NFL QB and head coach at Stanford and the San Francisco 49ers has made countless headlines for doing some pretty strange things, particularly with his unique recruiting tactics.

"He's definitely a character, a little bizarre," current Michigan QB Shea Patterson told Hayes. "You'll be sitting there talking to him, and you're thinking, What the hell is this guy talking about? Is this real life? But I really like him."

Bizarre might be an understatement this time around. What we really want to know now is: Has Harbaugh gotten over his fear of nervous chickens or is white meat off the table for Patterson, too?