As it turns out, Texas quarterback Jerrod Heard had to battle more than the Oklahoma State defense during last weekend's 30-27 loss to the Cowboys.

“My stomach was all jacked up,” Heard said Tuesday after the Longhorns wrapped up practice.

He wasn't able to meet with the media following the game due to having to spend Saturday evening in the training room getting worked on for a stomach ailment.

“I don't know what I had,” Heard said. “Something wasn't right.”

Charlie Strong said Monday Heard first showed signs of being ill last Thursday when he spiked a temperature. The redshirt freshman spent Friday, the day before the game, getting rest and drinking fluids.

He played against the Cowboys, but he wasn't feeling like himself.

“I was just down and I was really having, hard stomach aches, I guess you could say,” Heard said. “Other than that I just had to make sure I was still putting nutrients into my body.”

He was sick, but Heard isn't making excuses for his performance not being enough to propel Texas (1-3, 0-1 in the Big 12) to a victory. Heard finished 9-for-17 passing with 119 yards, one interception. He was also sacked seven times and rushed for just 48 net yards.

No matter how he's feeling, Heard knows he's got to bring his trademark swagger with him every time out and put forth his best effort. That includes this Saturday when the Longhorns hit the road to face No. 4 TCU (4-0, 1-0).

“That's part of signing up saying you want to be the quarterback at the University of Texas,” Heard said. “You put yourself in that limelight that even if you have a 102 fever or you really can't even stand up straight because your stomach hurts, you're still going to have to play to your full extent.”