Ole Miss senior kicker Lucas Carneiro is the best there is.
Period.
Carneiro, who transferred to Ole Miss from Western Kentucky prior to last season, left his mark on the Rebels’ historic 2025 campaign which ended in the national semifinals of the College Football Playoffs. Along the way, Carneiro connected on 3-of-3 field goal attempts in a Sugar Bowl quarterfinal win over Georgia, hitting record breaking kicks from 55, 56, and connecting on a game-winner from 47 yards out with a few seconds left on the clock.
He gives the Rebels a scoring threat anywhere on the plus side of the field, and that is a huge advantage heading into a 2026 season with high…and realistic…expectations for his team.
““The kid’s going to be an absolute superstar in the NFL. He’s that talented,” Carneiro’s high school coach TJ Albert told The Charlotte Observer newspaper.
Ole Miss fans already know that much.
Lucas Carneiro
On Tuesday, Carneiro stood before the local media inside the press room at the Manning Center. In this day and age of NIL, Carneiro chose to stay at Ole Miss and play for head coach Pete Golding.
Why? he could have likely went anywhere he pleased.
“I love it here,” Carneiro answered, “and I just felt after that game, why would I want to go anywhere else? Just continue to build a legacy here and be around the people that I love to be around every single day…and just continue to grow, as well.”
Carneiro made 31-of-35 field goals last season, hitting his longest in the semifinals of the College Football Playoffs at the Fiesta Bowl versus Miami, another record setter. He was 56-of-56 on PATs, finishing second in the nation in scoring as he accounted for 149 total points.
Lucas Carneiro connects on his record-setting field goal in the Fiesta Bowl.
Not only did he turn down any NIL suitors, he also tuned his back on the NFL Draft. Yes, he would have been drafted this year.
“It’s my last year, so I figured I might as well stay,” said Carneiro. “Just continue to build off what I’ve done so far. It’s a new year with a majority of new guys on the team, so I’m ready to do it again. I thought it was best for me to stay one more year and just continue to mature.”
Now that he’s here for one more season, what are Carneiro’s goals heading into one of the most highly-anticipated seasons in the great tradition of Ole Miss football?
“I think just kind of flipping the page from last season, just taking it all in. Starting over. Just continue to build. This spring I’ve been working on just perfecting my process and just getting that dialed down. (When it’s time for the season) and PG (Pete Golding) throws me out there for a kick, I’m ready to go no matter what the situation is,” related Carneiro.
Carneiro was born in Boston but grew up in Cornelius, N.C.