LOS ANGELES — Injured USC quarterback Aaron Corp made enough progress Thursday to suggest his recovery time from a cracked fibula could be closer to one week than three.

Corp played catch after the morning practice. He then threw passes early in their afternoon session while wearing a new brace that reduces the pressure on the outside of his left leg.
Corp appeared to be limping less and said his leg is “definitely improving.” He planned to increase his activity level on Friday in hopes of returning by early next week.
“I thought Aaron looked pretty good,” USC coach Pete Carroll said. “He was dropping back comfortably.
He’s going to make a quick recovery, hopefully.”
Carroll didn’t guarantee that Corp would retain his starting spot, emphasizing Wednesday that the competition between him and Matt Barkley would continue. Or as quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates put it Thursday: “He (Barkley) is the No. 1 quarterback in practice, and we’ll see when Aaron gets back what happens.”
Barkley rebounded from a somewhat rocky morning by connecting on several pinpoint passes in the afternoon. The freshman from Mater Dei threw three interceptions during the morning practice, although one came on a tipped ball his receiver should have caught and another resulted from a receiver rounding off his route. The offense also spent much of the morning installing new plays.
“It didn’t faze me,” Barkley said of the interceptions, the first thrown by any quarterback in camp.
“That’s what Coach Carroll emphasizes. Just put things in the past. So I didn’t really let it get to me.
“I do the best I can of trying to put that away and not even think about it. But you have to learn from it and not do it again.”
AYLES’ ARRHYTHMIA
Tight end Blake Ayles (Orange Lutheran) is being evaluated for a heart arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat.
He will undergo further testing and could have a procedure to fix the problem next week.
The condition is not life-threatening, and Ayles said he would practice Friday.
NOTES
An MRI revealed that defensive tackle Averell Spicer has a high left ankle sprain. He is expected to miss 2-3 weeks. ...
Cornerback Shareece Wright said he might need an MRI after his bruised right knee swelled, requiring a post-practice ice pack. ...
Fullback Stanley Havili returned after missing some time because of a shoulder injury. ...
Butch Lewis took reps as the first-team left tackle to give starter Charles Brown a breather. Brown has been managing a sore back. ...
Freshman defensive back Patrick Hall’s academic paperwork did not go through in time for him to practice. ...