During all four years with the Oregon football team, place kicker Jared Siegel, who played from 2001-2004, was the special teams scoring leader. As the second all-time scoring leader in program history and holder of multiple single-season records, Siegel is among the list of the best Oregon special teams players in program history.

Q: It’s been some years since you departed Oregon football. What have you been up to?

A: I’ve been married for 10 years, have three kids and have lived in the Northwest in Portland and Seattle since leaving Oregon. Currently, I’m a partner at Delap CPA in Lake Oswego and I lead our consulting practice.

Q: The returners and other skill positions on the special teams have performed well recently, but the kickers have struggled. Is that fair to say?

A: The kicking game hasn’t been as solid as other parts of the team because often you absolve things you emphasize and the teams’ need for three points in most games isn’t there, so consequently there isn’t much opportunity to practice in game time situations. The special team has suffered a little bit, at least the kicking game on that front, but the talent is there. You have some really talented young players with an immense amount of potential. Matt Wogan was one of the highest recruited players out of high school. You can teach someone to kick a ball straight, but you can’t teach foot speed. He hit 75 percent of his field goals last year and for a true freshman, he is great and he’s off to a decent start this year. It’s just challenging to simulate game time situations with an offense that is as powerful as Oregon’s.

Q: From your perspective, has the criticism of the kicking game — specifically Alejandro Maldonado’s two missed field goals against Stanford — been overblown?

A: I wouldn’t offer an excuse for missing, but I would make the point that as a kicker, you garner more attention than you deserve. Both positively and negatively. You’re often the hero or the scapegoat in both scenarios. It is definitely a team game, but as a place kicker, it’s one of the few positions, maybe the only one on the field that the average spectator expects perfection. It is a very visible part of the game when the moment is right, you can execute, but to expect perfection from anyone is probably an unreasonable request.

Q: Can any of the fault be attributed to a potential mental block? 

A: Kicking is more mental than it is physical and Oregon certainly has no shortage of athleticism on the kicking teams. The challenge is without a lot of attempts, there aren’t a lot of opportunities to wipe tough misses out of your mind, so it can certainly become a mental battle that is challenging to master. You do have to be mentally tough as a place kicker and you can be your own best friend or worst enemy depending upon how you’re kicking at that moment.
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