Syracuse junior offensive tackle Sean Hickey said he will make a decision on whether to turn pro after Friday's Texas Bowl.
Hickey (6-foot-5, 291 pounds) has asked for feedback from the NFL Draft Advisory Board. He didn't play at all as a redshirt freshman in 2011, then started 13 times and played at a high level as a right tackle in 2012. He switched to left tackle this season as the Orange replaced first-round pick Justin Pugh, who was taken by the New York Giants after he left following his junior season.
Hickey is athletic and also prodigiously strong; he has benched as much as 525 pounds and during offseason drills last winter, he did 41 reps at 225 pounds.
If he returns, Hickey likely would go into next season as one of the nation's top five left tackles. But that could change depending on which junior tackles stay in school or go pro for the 2014 draft. That also is the issue facing Hickey in terms of his decision: He is not the highest-rated junior tackle and would move up or down on the tackle board depending on what other underclassmen choose to do.
Hickey played through a high ankle sprain late in the season but should be close to full strength for the Orange (6-6) when they meet Minnesota (8-4) in the Texas Bowl.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.