Freshman Matt Wogan was named Oregon’s starting kicker before last week’s game against Utah, pushing maligned senior Alejandro Maldonado to the bench. After Wednesday’s practice, Maldonado — who’s still the starting punter — talked about the week or so since his demotion, reflected on his career at Oregon and talked about his future.

How he’s felt since he lost the starting kicker job

“I’m OK with it,” Maldonado said. “It means I only have to focus on one thing and that’s punting. I like punting. It’s a lot of fun. You’ve just gotta catch it, kick it as far as you can and that’s it.”

Are you happy for new starting kicker Matt Wogan?

“Oh yeah,” Maldonado said. “I’m very happy for Matt. He’s a great guy, a great kicker. He’ll be good.”

Looking back on his Oregon career

“It could’ve gone a different way,” Maldonado said. “You’d want to go a separate route that I went, but I’m cool with it. It’s a learning experience.”

Do you still think about the missed kicks against USC in 2011 and Stanford in 2012?

“No, not really,” Maldonado said. “Those are in the past and I can’t change the past.”

Future plans

“I’m focused on getting my degree and going home to help out my family,” Maldonado said. “(My major is) family and human services. I want to do some nonprofit work (helping kids).”

Are you thinking about an NFL career as a punter?

“No,” Maldonado said. “Maybe if things had gone differently here (at Oregon), but no, I’m not thinking about that.”

Follow Victor Flores on Twitter @vflores415