Anders Carlson made his share of big kicks during his five-year run as Auburn’s starting kicker, but the second-leading scorer in program history couldn’t recall ever getting iced by an opposing team.

The only time Carlson attempted a game-winning kick was in 2020 against Arkansas, when his go-ahead 39-yard field goal with 7 seconds left lifted Auburn to a 30-28 win — one that was mired in some controversy after Bo Nix’s attempted spike that was ruled intentional grounding but could have also been a fumble. Even on that attempt, the Razorbacks didn’t call a timeout before Carlson lined up for the kick.

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While he doesn’t have firsthand experience with being iced in a clutch situation, and even though his college kicking days are behind him, Carlson still offered his thoughts on the NCAA’s proposed rule change that would eliminate teams’ ability to call consecutive timeouts. Such a rule change would mean no more situations where a team calls back-to-back timeouts late in a half or late in a game to try to throw off a kicker lining up for a critical field goal.

“I think it’s a pretty cool part of the game,” Carlson said Thursday at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. “I don’t know what they’re going to rule; it’s their decision to do. I like (the ability to call back-to-back timeouts), personally.”

Carlson reiterated that he couldn’t recall a team ever trying that during his kicking career, but he vividly remembers Auburn executing the consecutive-timeout strategy last fall against Mississippi State. After the Tigers erased a 21-point first-half deficit and staked a 33-30 lead late in the fourth quarter in Starkville, Miss., the Bulldogs quickly got down the field and within range to attempt a game-tying field goal in the final seconds.

Mississippi State kicker Massimo Biscardi lined up for a 44-yarder with 29 seconds left when Auburn called a timeout. Biscardi drilled the first attempt, which didn’t count. He lined it up again, and Auburn again burned a timeout, hoping to ice him as his second try sailed through the uprights. On the third attempt, with Auburn out of timeouts, Biscardi tied the game at 33-33.

The game wound up going to overtime, with Mississippi State holding on for a 39-33 win.

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Even as a kicker at risk of being iced, Carlson seems to enjoy the gamesmanship that comes with the late-game timeouts.

“It’s impressive when a guy goes 3-for-3 and only the last one counts,” Carlson said.

From his point of view, how teams use their timeouts is up to them. He said he never really concerned himself with the possibility of an opponent trying to ice him. Whether a team calls a timeout or not, it’s still his job to put the ball through the uprights.

“When you’re out there on the field and you’re getting ready to kick, it’s absolutely not on your mind at all,” Carlson said. “You’re just present in the moment, listening to your holder’s cues and just focusing on whatever mental notes you might have, every single kick and, again, making it not different than every other kick.”

Though Carlson doesn’t believe there’s a need for that rule change — one of four being considered to help shorten the length of college games — he understands the appeal of it.

“I don’t know what the reason might be,” Carlson said. “Maybe it’s the fan experience, not making y’all sit there through a couple commercials — but it is interesting.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.