I really do think the strangest thing about this season was the way the program completely and totally abandoned the uniform reveals halfway through the year. And it’s not as if they went cold turkey. They did full pre-tapes for a few weeks, did one or two weeks of stills and then, boom, nothing. I have to admit, I don’t hate having to organize a post around the shirts and pants reveal every week, but it’s just a weird marketing move.

Anyway, who knows what they’re wearing. Probably some form of gold? I’ll go ahead and throw out a guess… Gold hats with Tiger script, gold jerseys, black pants.

• Are you a man wanting to kiss a woman? If you live in Iowa, consider two facts: First, do you have a mustache? Well then YOU BETTER NOT KISS THAT WOMAN IN PUBLIC, YOU PERVERT, OR WE’LL ARREST YOU! Also, do you want to kiss a woman for more than 5 minutes. WELL DON’T. THAT’S AGAINST THE RULES TOO.
• If you had to guess, where would you think Iowa sits on the list of all-time winningest college football programs? And where do you think Missouri sits? I’ll give you a second…

Finished thinking? Missouri is 48th, with 720 all time wins. Iowa? Tied for 53rd with Boston College with 701 wins.

• This week in “Notable Alumni from…” we really only have one option. The University of Iowa has many prestigious alumni from across the spectrum of fields, both artistic and scientific. But when you see this glorious man staring back at you on the Wikipedia page, you can’t help but shout him out.

Miss you, Gene.

Let me tell you why I ended up drinking too much this holiday season.

I’m generally the one in charge of drinks in my family, and I really wanted to go all out for Christmas this year. I put together an easy cocktail list for Christmas Eve, but I wanted something special for the big day. I’ve always been interested in devling into the world of clarified cocktails, but it’s, uhm, a lot of work and time and investment. So what better time to give it a try than when I’m off work for the holiday?

There are a lot of clarified cocktail options out there, but I wanted something bright, fruity and at least somewhat tangentially related to Christmas. So I copped the Thirsty Whale’s recipe for a Cranberry Grenadine Cosmo, modded it a bit and am happy to present the Clarified Spiced Cranberry Cosmo.

2 cups Vodka, 0.75 cups Cointreau, 0.75 cups cup fresh or super lime juice, 0.50 cups grenadine, 4 dashes Cranberry Bitters, 4 dashes Angostura Bitters, Salt or 80/20 saline, 0.5 cups whole milk

Pour all ingredients into large containers and mix. Let sit 1-4 hours to let milk curds develop. Through cheesecloth or two layers of paper towels, let mixture drain into a different container. Once the filtering mixture runs clear, take the first few ounces of liquid and filter them back through the cheesecloth/paper towels. Process will take multiple hours, so be patient!

This is my first time making a clarified cocktail, and it’s a process that, while time intensive, I’d highly recommend. The final product is silky smooth, almost velvety in texture and perfectly blended. The nice thing about this cocktail is that you can serve it two ways depending on your preference. You can either stir it down over a big rock in a glass until it’s nice and diluted or you can put it in a highball and top with soda water. I’ve tried it both ways and, while I prefer the former, both are excellent.

Happy New Year! And thanks for following along as I make cocktails this year!

Well, well, well. Here we are, on the outside looking in of the new CFP era. How have you enjoyed the new format thus far?

Josh Matejka, Deputy Site Manager: Not exactly, but that doesn’t mean it won’t work in the future. As Sam pointed out below — spoiler, we don’t write these in the order they’re placed! — seeding needs to be fixed to determine how to make that first round a bit more appealing. Otherwise you’re going to have a host of battle-tested Big 10 and SEC squads pounding on upstart squads from the lesser conferences of college football. It’ll get figured out eventually, but the first round of this year’s tournament was undoubtedly a swing-and-miss.

Sammy Stava, Staff Writer: I mean, I like the new 12-team format but let’s be honest, the first weekend was a dud with mostly uncompetitive games. Let’s hope these quarterfinals on NYE and New Year’s Day are better.

Sam Snelling, Ne’er-do-well: I don’t think the format works yet because of the seeding. I don’t know how long the committee can pretend that the best two conferences are the same as the next two or three conferences when it comes to seeding. Rewarding conference champions makes sense in the abstract, but Boise State winning the MWC and Arizona State winning the Big 12 isn’t the same as the Big 10 or SEC winner. That fact is why I think you saw so many blowouts in the first round. Too many lopsided rosters playing at home, where they’re nearly impossible to beat anyway. If you want better games in the first round, the seeding needs to be fixed. Even then it won’t guarantee a close game, but it’ll make them more likely.

Chad Moller, Staff Writer: First round games were a dud, but the games should get better as we get deeper into the tournament (hopefully!!). I’m not a fan of the auto-byes for the conference champs, there’s no way that Arizona State and Boise State should have byes, and I’m hopeful that the powers that be will clean this up going forward. I’m looking forward to the rest of the action!

What’s your favorite Mizzou bowl memory? A single game, a single play… let us have it!

Josh Matejka: Mizzou’s Cotton Bowl win over Oklahoma State in 2014 was an absolute barn-burner. Having been there in person, there’s no describing how it felt to watch that fourth quarter in person. And while it would be easy to say Shane Ray’s scoop-and-score as the most memorable moment — it’s probably the correct answer — I’m also going to say I have a special fondness for Maty Mauk’s shoulder-lowing touchdown run against Minnesota in the 2015 Citrus Bowl.

Sammy Stava: It’s got to be last year’s Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State with the Luther Burden “LeBron” TD celebration, right? Previous Cotton Bowl wins over Oklahoma State and Arkansas work, too.

Sam Snelling: Single game was probably the Cotton Bowl romp over Arkansas, mostly because close games can be stressful so watching MU stomp the s*** out of the Hogs was gratifying. Single play has to be Shane Ray’s scoop & score against Okie Lite, right?

Chad Moller: Mine has to be Brad Smith’s career closer against South Carolina in the 2005 Independence Bowl. In a game that appeared hopeless after falling behind 21-0, and 28-7, Smith put the Tigers on his back and virtually single-handedly led them to a win. Was it the most important win in Mizzou history? Certainly not, but it was very meaningful and helped set the stage for momentum that carried Gary Pinkel’s program to great heights in the next three seasons.

Mizzou will be missing a few key pieces in their attempt at a 10th win, including Luther Burden III, Armand Membou and Chuck Hicks. Which player do you think will benefit most from the extra snaps?

Josh Matejka: I’ve been on the Josh Manning hype train for two years now, and it feels illegal to abandon it. I think Manning is going to have a breakout game against the Hawkeyes in the Luther Burden role.

Sammy Stava: Marquise Johnson at the wide receiver position and Cayden Green on the offensive line. Those two will need to have a big game with both of them being key returners on the offense heading into next season.

Sam Snelling: Well I’m hoping Josh Manning can have a big day. I think there’s a lot of talent in the WR room and hopefully it can shine. At the same time I’d love to see Theo have a big day as well.

Chad Moller: The obvious pick is Theo but I agree with everyone above that Manning has a chance to be a big factor. I’ve really liked him in what I’ve seen so far, and hopefully this will be the next step in his evolution as a big-time playmaker for this team going forward.

PICK ‘EM! A date with Iowa is always guaranteed to be a dire, glacial affair, but Mizzou is due for a win over their regional foe. How do you see this one shaking out?

Josh Matejka: It’s going to be an absolute slog for three quarters and then unnecessarily nervy for about 45 minutes. I’ll say Missouri ends up the victor in a stupid score like 13-6.

Sammy Stava: Brady Cook goes out a winner with a big day on the ground and in the air. Mizzou gets an interception late from Toriano Pride to seal the deal. We’ll go with a 24-20 final score.

Sam Snelling: I fully expect this game to “Iowa” in a big way because nobody can Iowa like Iowa. I’ll take the Tigers though and something dumb like 11-3.

Chad Moller: Lower-level bowl games are so hard to gauge, so often they come down to who is more motivated to be there. The teams have a seemingly equal amount of opt-outs and transfer losses, so I think Mizzou still has more talent on the field than Iowa. I’m not a big fan of Coach Drink saying yesterday in his pre-game press conference that this is essentially an exhibition game. Hopefully that was just gamesmanship and his team comes out highly motivated to end this year the right way. I’ll say the better team finds a way, and Brady Cook ends his career the right way with a 23-16 Tiger win.