Defense makes it bad day for quarterbacks

USC’s quarterback competition stalled Friday, though the players vying for the starting job were mostly blameless.

There just wasn’t much Aaron Corp, Mitch Mustain or Matt Barkley could do to push things forward. Not with defensive linemen constantly in their faces.

“They just kind of wiped us out today,” Corp said.

Junior end Everson Griffen led the charge as the defense recorded sack after sack after sack during the full-team scrimmage portion of the workout.

“We just ate up the O-line,” Griffen said. “Yum-yum.”

The defense, which is replacing multiple starters, finally got a taste of success a day after Corp shredded the unit with long scrambles and Mustain and Barkley made several highlight-reel throws.

After Thursday’s workout, Coach Pete Carroll had tabbed Corp as the early leader in the race to replace Mark Sanchez.

Corp, however, broke free only once Friday.

“I can’t get complacent,” he said. “I don’t think I did particularly well.”

On the plus side, none of the quarterbacks had a pass intercepted.

Of course, they did not get as many chances as they had hoped, thanks to a porous offensive line and injuries that kept several fullbacks and tight ends sidelined.

Not the best conditions for assessing the quarterbacks.

“It’s very hard when the [defensive] guys are coming through,” Carroll said. “It’s not how you want to do it.”

Steroid rumor false

Carroll refuted an Internet report that said former Trojans linebackers Brian Cushing and Clay Matthews tested positive for steroids at the NFL scouting combine in February.

In a one-sentence blurb posted Thursday, NFLDraftBible.com, which is not affiliated with the league, wrote that the players tested positive “according to various sources, including one NFL team.”

Carroll issued a statement in the afternoon that said, “These rumors are absolutely false.”

The NFL later released a statement that said: “Neither the 32 clubs nor the league office know the results of drug or steroid tests taken at the 2009 Combine. The independent medical advisors who administer the tests have notified in writing those players and only those players who tested positive at the Combine. . . . .”

After practice, Carroll said he had called the NFL’s testing agency and was told the players tested clean. He also said that neither Cushing nor Matthews ever tested positive in drug tests administered by the school or NCAA.

But he said that “a couple” of NFL teams called the football office Friday with concerns.

“Most likely, throughout this process the next couple weeks, they’ll keep wondering because somebody wrote that like that. It’s just terribly irresponsible,” Carroll said. “Things that happen at this time cause a real frenzy because teams think, ‘Maybe we don’t know something.’

“Some of the craziest things can happen all the way up to draft day.”

Quick hits

Tailback Curtis McNeal said he did not practice because of a concussion suffered Thursday. . . . Tailback Stafon Johnson returned to practice after an MRI exam showed only swelling in his right knee. Johnson suffered a ligament injury during Rose Bowl workouts last December. . . . Tailback Joe McKnight (foot) dressed but did not participate. Carroll said the junior might return Tuesday. . . . The Trojans will be in full pads Sunday. They will practice at 11:30 a.m. and will scrimmage at the end of the workout.

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gary.klein@latimes.com