FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Fairfield University athletics has made its mark on the city of Buffalo for decades. This weekend, Stags Associate Director of Athletics Michael Harris will look to add a different spin on the program's athletic presence in the Queen City.

Harris, who oversees Sports Performance at the University, is one of 12 contestants at this weekend's U.S. Chicken Wing Eating Championship. He will go up against some of the world's top competitive eaters including Joey Chestnut and defending champion Miki Sudo who devoured 246 chicken wings in 12 minutes.

"My friend texted me one day and said he was 95 percent sure he could get me into the wing eating championship," Harris recalled. "First, I said no you can't but then followed with but if you can get me in, I'll be there."

His friend is Matt Ensero who owns the restaurant Wing It On in Waterbury, a company which now has placed franchises in the Carolinas and Texas. Ensero, who has been buddies with Harris since high school,  has been part of the planning committee for the annual Buffalo Wing Festival in Buffalo for the last three years. The competition takes place on the 50-yard line at Highmark Stadium and culminates the weekend festival on Sunday, September 3.

Harris knows he is not a competitive eater in the same class of Chestnut and Sudo, but he has earned his share of triumphs in local eating challenges which include a closet full of t-shirts that commemorate his accomplishments.

"I have never done any eating against the clock," Harris said. "I've gone to restaurants and done their eating challenges like the Kitchen Sink challenge at Leo's Restaurant in Southbury. You need to eat three or four eggs, three pancakes, three pieces of French toast, three slices of bacon, two sausages, hash browns, and fruit. If you do it, you win a t-shirt and I have five of those shirts."

Harris is a Buffalo native who knows his way around a plate of chicken wings. While playing football at Springfield College, Harris carved his way through 30-plus wings in about 25 minutes without any competition looming.

While his numbers may not come close to the Miki Sudo or Joey Chestnut, Harris is still looking forward to this unique opportunity to be on the grand stage of one of the most prestigious eating championships in the world.

"Without trying to eat really fast, I know I can still eat a lot but nowhere near where competitive eaters are," Harris said. "But I will have a front row seat literally with the best eaters in the world. I am excited to see what that looks like in person. I am also looking to see the comparative nature of the competition where I will eat one wing and see that Miki has already eaten four. Based on the math, I believe she averaged a wing every three seconds last year. To see that in person will be pretty ridiculous."

Still, Harris is someone who has been around competition his entire life both as a student-athlete as well as a sports performance professional who prepares athletes to reach their peak performance level through nutrition, endurance, and training. And while his goal of reaching 50 wings seems practical, he knows the adrenaline will be pumping through his body once the competition starts.

"I know I will have adrenaline and will probably start faster than I tell myself to start," Harris said. "I am sure by heart rate will be at 140 just getting ready to start eating. I'm thinking that 12 minutes is a long time so hopefully I will find my rhythm and be comfortable where I am going."

But just in case, Harris knows his wife Nicole will be in the back of his mind, playing the role of reason during the competition.

"We have been together nearly 20 years so she has always been my conscience," Harris said. "When I am going to do something that may be ill advised, she lets me know it's ill advised. She is supporting me and totally into it for me. She is rooting for me to just have fun without worrying about the numbers."

Harris has also found a way for Fairfield University student-athletes to benefit from his participation. He is hoping that Fairfield fans, alumni, parents, and friends will support him by making a donation to Fairfield Sports Performance where the money will be used to enhance the equipment and programs that Harris and his staff provide student-athletes every day.

"I'm happy that there is a way that our student-athletes will benefit from this competition as well," Harris said. "If we can raise money for the program, I think that will be helpful for everyone."

With a chance to compete against the top eaters in the world and to benefit Fairfield student-athletes, Michael Harris already has come up a winner.

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