The NFL circus -- aka USC’s pro day -- is two days away

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Less than 48 hours from now, NFL coaches and other talent evaluators will converge on USC to take a hard look at the latest crop of pro prospects, including three first-round-caliber linebackers and quarterback Mark Sanchez, a potential top-10 pick.

I stopped by USC today to chat with Pete Carroll about the latest collection of NFL hopefuls, and to ask him about the PR fiasco that was Sanchez’s farewell news conference. Both he and Sanchez insist that it wasn’t as icy as it appeared to everyone watching it.

The Trojans’ pro day takes place Wednesday and is open USC students with ID. But it won’t be the zoo it was a few years ago when Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush were the stars, in part because the NCAA no longer allows schools to bring in high school recruits to watch.

Here’s a chat with Carroll regarding the Sanchez situation:

Want to get real-time updates from UCLA and USC pro days, and from the NFL draft? Follow along on Twitter at LATimesFarmer.

-- Sam Farmer

For the record: An earlier version of this item said that pro day is open to the public. It’s only open to USC students with ID.