McFoy Is Lost to Injury

USC’s receiver corps got thinner and less experienced Monday after an MRI exam revealed that senior Chris McFoy fractured two bones in the shoulder area against Washington State.

McFoy, who caught his first career touchdown pass in the Trojans’ 28-22 victory, is expected to sit out four to six weeks, according to Coach Pete Carroll.

McFoy’s injury, coupled with the uncertain status of junior split end Dwayne Jarrett, forces freshman Vidal Hazelton into a rotation with sophomore Patrick Turner as the third-ranked Trojans prepare for Saturday’s game against Washington.

Senior Steve Smith, who had a career game against Washington State, will start at flanker.

Jarrett did not travel to Washington State because of a shoulder sprain. Carroll said the All-American was absent from Monday’s practice to receive treatment.

“He’s still a little sore, but he’s a thousand times better than what he was,” Carroll said.

Hazelton, 6 feet 3 and 200 pounds, was regarded as one of the most prominent players in USC’s 2006 recruiting class. He made several spectacular plays during training camp before taking a back seat to Jarrett and Turner once preparation began for the opener against Arkansas.

Hazelton played against Washington State but did not catch a pass.

“We know he can make plays, we know that he can do stuff,” Carroll said. “We’re hoping we can get him comfortable enough where he can show up on the game field.”

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Nose tackle Sedrick Ellis, who had arthroscopic knee surgery on Sept. 12, participated in all team drills during Monday’s practice and said he planned to play against Washington.

“My rehab has gone great,” he said. “We’ll try it all this week and make sure I get some practice reps and that I know what’s going on in the game plan and Saturday give it a test.”

Carroll said Ellis could start if he got through the week, but a reserve role is more probable.

“We won’t rely on him exclusively,” Carroll said. “We’d like to just get him to play some and kind of work his way back in.”

Ellis, who watched the Trojans struggle to get pressure on Washington State quarterback Alex Brink, is eager to return to a rotation with tackles Chris Barrett and Fili Moala.

“There was definitely some plays in that game I felt I could have made,” he said.

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Alatini Malu and Travis Draper worked at right guard in place of starter Chilo Rachal, who sprained his right ankle against Washington State. Rachal said he hoped to play Saturday.

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Freshman Allen Bradford, who switched from running back to safety last week, met on the field with Carroll for about 10 minutes after practice. Bradford said later that he was still struggling with a decision about whether to play offense or defense and was scheduled to meet with Carroll on Monday evening.

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Washington’s Tyrone Willingham is the last opposing coach to win at the Coliseum. USC has won 28 consecutive home games since Willingham led Stanford to a 21-16 victory on Sept. 29, 2001.

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Carroll said he regretted not going for a two-point conversion after the Trojans took a 27-15 lead in the fourth quarter against Washington State. The Cougars cut the margin to 28-22 and were positioned to possibly win the game with another touchdown and extra point. “We should have gone for two. I did a lousy job of it,” Carroll said.

gary.klein@latimes.com