(Future) Badger Observer: 2026 offensive lineman Ben Novak
This future Wisconsin lineman put together a versatile, dominant performance in a blowout Friday.
HIGHLAND, Ind. — Ben Novak thought his night was done for Merrillville Andrean late in the first half after four touchdown drives.
But that quickly changed.
A late score in the second quarter brought Highland within two scores, but he dampened some of the Trojans’ good vibes heading to the locker room by blocking the ensuing extra point. Novak, one of two University of Wisconsin scholarship offensive line commits, then played most of the final two quarters to help Andrean further assert itself in a 52-13 win.
“Then (the) quarterback scrambled, threw a good pass, so had to go in there, block the PAT,” Novak said. “And coming out of half, asked my coach, ‘Hey, we’re going back in?’ I was so just handled business from there.
“Good team W. The defense definitely handled it in the second half much better. We just kind of feeded off our momentum going into the half.”
The (Future) Badger Observer series continues watching and evaluating Wisconsin’s 2026 commits. Here’s how Novak performed Friday, what stood out, and what he said postgame about a variety of topics.
Be sure to go back and read (Future) Badger Observer’s first three entries with four-star wide receiver Jayden Petit, quarterback Ryan Hopkins and linebacker Ben Wenzel. We also anticipate watching wide receiver Tayshon Bardo (Elkhart, Indiana) and tight end Jack Janda (Novi Detroit Catholic Central, Michigan) as we travel east to cover Wisconsin’s road test at Michigan next weekend.