As it turns out, Mississippi State fans painted Nashville maroon, white … and green.

The Dec. 30 Music City Bowl game between the Bulldogs and Wake Forest generated a $22.2 million economic impact, bowl officials said this week.

The game drew 55,208 fans to LP Field, and an estimated 37,000 of those came from out of town. That, in turn, generated almost 26,000 hotel occupancies.

The game, a 23-17 MSU victory, also had an estimated 4.2 million TV viewers.

“The bowl continued to exhibit the strong momentum it has shown in recent years, based on attendance, ratings and economic impact,” Brad Lampley, the bowl’s chairman, told The Tennessean. 

The 2010 game between Tennessee and North Carolina generated an estimated $20.1 million. The bowl's bst showing was in 2007, when a Kentucky-Florida State matchup generated $27.1 million.