Indiana OL Benjamin Novak commits to Wisconsin

Merrillville (Ind.) Andrean 2026 offensive tackle Benjamin Novak announced his commitment to Wisconsin on Monday night.

The 6-foot-7, 300-pound Novak visited Madison this past weekend for the win over Purdue. He also made it to campus in the summer and built a great relationship with future position coach AJ Blazek.

“Everything made sense for me,” Novak said. “I wanted to be an elite student-athlete and I feel I get all those attributes at Wisconsin. You get the academic side. You get to play great football. Wisconsin is constantly referred to as o-line university and I feel their o-line coach Coach Blazek meets those standards of being an elite o-line coach.

“Coach Fickell is an amazing head coach. He leads his guys with authority and I agree with a lot of things he says to the media. And their offensive lineman, assistant offensive line Coach Casey Rabach and Coach Heeman they’re great o-line coaches. They just bring the juice.”

Novak chose the Badgers over an offer list that included Indiana and Kentucky among others. He has a ton of upside.

“His attention to detail and need to reach perfection perfectly encapsulates his story,” said Andrean head coach coach Chris Skinner said. “He did not start playing football till freshman year. Obviously he has some God-given ability in terms of size but it’s really been his work ethic and focus on the details that has gotten him to this point.

Novak becomes commit No. 2 for the Badgers in the 2026 recruiting class. He joins quarterback Jarin Mock in the fold.

“He’s very responsible,” Skinner said. “Takes care of his grades in the classroom. He’s not just a football player. He’s a very well-rounded individual. We take a lot of pride that’s how our kids are and cut from that same cloth.”

Novak has known for awhile he’d end up playing college football in Madison.

“The entire coaching staff was very welcoming,” he said. “When I visited in the summer fell in love with the place. 

“Then when I visited this past weekend the fanbase is amazing at Wisconsin. The stadium gets rocking. It’s loud. The coaches are into it. The players are into it. The fans are into it. That’s all you’d love as a player just a rocking stadium.”