The Wisconsin Badgers extended an offer to three-star Class of 2026 offensive tackle Braden Wilmes on Tuesday.
Wilmes becomes the latest 2026 target to receive an offer from UW, joining wide receivers Kennan and Jarod Pula, interior lineman Samuel Simpson and athlete Sharroid Whitehead in recent weeks.
The 6-foot-2, 280-pound athlete represents Lawrence Free State High School in Lawrence, Kansas. The 247Sports composite rankings have Wilmes as the nation’s No. 33 offensive lineman, Kansas’ No. 7 recruit and the nation’s No. 445 recruit for the 2026 class.
Wilmes has already received offers from seven NCAA Division I programs. Iowa, Minnesota, Arkansas, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State and Wisconsin round out the list so far.
247Sports hasn’t released a crystal ball prediction yet, but On3’s recruiting prediction machine projects OT will land in Iowa. Rivals, on the other hand, has the Kansas Jayhawks as the favorite.
Excluding Wilmes, Wisconsin offered 16 offensive tackles for the 2026 class.
The current focus is on Fickell’s class of 2025, which currently ranks 13th in the country with 17 total commitments.
