Later today, a woefully overmatched Kansas University football team will meet the Baylor University Bears, who are rated among the top five teams in the country, averaging 63 points a game.

No one is giving the Jayhawks much of a chance for what would be a major upset, and no one has any idea how many points the Baylor team will score. It’s a mismatch, and all the players and coaches, both at KU and Baylor, know it.

Nevertheless, no one wants to win more than the KU players. They will not give up because they want to represent themselves, their team and the university in the best possible manner.

There’s a lot of finger-pointing about who is at fault for the current state of affairs in the KU football program, but no matter how upset fans and ticket-holders may be, it is wrong to blame those on the field today.

Try to imagine what the players must be thinking as they put on their pads and uniforms before today’s game. They know the odds, but this is not going to keep them from trying their best even though they are playing against bigger players, players with more experience, players in a winning program and players who want to compile the best possible record in hopes of qualifying to compete for the national championship.

There also is the matter of Big 12 Conference rules that limit the number of players a team can suit up for an away game. They cannot bring the entire squad, so even if a coach might not want to run up a score he has brought his best players and left some of the less-talented players at home. Consequently, KU players will be going against Baylor’s best, not reserves who seldom get into games.

How has this come about? Winning is the name of the game, but the win-loss record of the KU football team — 12 wins and 52 losses — since the departure of Coach Mark Mangino in 2004 does not reflect the standard of excellence that KU alumni and friends expect from their school.

In fact, it is an embarrassment!

It started when former KU Athletic Director Lew Perkins forced the resignation of Mangino, who had compiled a 50-48 record over his eight years, including four postseason bowl games.

Perkins then hired Turner Gill, who posted a record of five wins and 19 losses over two years before being fired.

Charlie Weis was hired by KU Athletic Director Sheahon Zenger and, during his two seasons of coaching plus eight games of a third season, he had a win-loss record of 6-22 before being fired by Zenger.

Lawrence native Clint Bowen, an assistant under Weis, was asked to take over the remainder of the 2014 season and ended up with a record of one win, seven losses.

Zenger decided not to retain Bowen as head coach and hired David Beaty, who has a 0-4 record heading into today’s game. Will KU win another game this year?

Combining the salary/severance packages paid by KU to Gill and Weis — a total of $22.5 million — KU ended up paying more than $2 million for each win it has recorded since Mangino’s departure. Based on the results, it was a poor and embarrassing return on KU’s investment.

Many will claim the coaches and players are responsible for the terrible win-loss record, but there is every reason to point to the athletic directors, the men who run the athletic program and play a huge role in the current embarrassing football situation.

Perkins and Zenger used high-dollar contracts to hire coaches who didn’t deliver. The ADs either didn’t do their homework, were careless, relied too much on professional headhunters, tried to do it all by themselves or didn’t have tough-minded objective individuals on the search committees.

It’s customary to have a couple of university representatives on these committees, along with people who are part of the inner circles of athletic and alumni organizations. Just how deep, comprehensive and objective were these searches?

The final selection of the coaches rests on the shoulders of the ADs, and, yet, they have been able to stay out of the spotlight relative to the football situation with most of the blame being focused on coaches and players.

Who knows whether Zenger’s hiring of Beaty will turn out to be a winner? This won’t be known for three or four more years.

However, one thing is sure: Beaty and the players on the field today should not be blamed for their record to date or for the entire season. Although the decline of the KU football program started with Perkins’ ousting of Mangino, the current situation with the lack of players and the likelihood of a winless season rests at the feet of Zenger.

No matter how good a coach or an athletic director may be, a university is not going to have a strong, solid, sustained football program without a demanding and highly respected coach; good players; a strong, popular, visible, honest and engaging athletic director; and strong support by the chancellor or president. It’s a total team effort, and, unfortunately, KU has not enjoyed this environment. Alumni and friends certainly have been generous in their fiscal support.

Longtime and loyal KU fans do not expect championship football seasons year after year, but they would like to have teams with a respectable win-loss record.

What can or will Zenger be able to do to turn the program around? What’s a reasonable timetable?