Tuesday's Insight Bowl saw a record crowd that had fans cheering and gave downtown Tempe restaurants, hotels and shops a much-needed boost.

Sun Devil Stadium was overrun with fans decked in black and gold - the team colors shared by the Missouri Tigers and Iowa Hawkeyes.

The Hawkeyes rallied to beat the Tigers 27-24 in a game marked by record-breaking performances and attendance.

Insight's crowd of 53,453 brought 8,363 more people to the bowl compared with last year. The largest crowd Insight has had since it moved to Tempe in 2006 was 49,103 when Kansas beat Minnesota 42-21. The previous record for Insight attendance was set in 1997 when 49,385 people watched Arizona beat New Mexico 20-14 before a hometown crowd at Tucson's Arizona Stadium.

Andy Bagnato of the Fiesta Bowl organization, which manages the Insight Bowl, said Tuesday's crowd exceeded organizers' hopes.

"We've heard other bowls are really struggling this year because of the economy. We feel really fortunate to set a record in this economic climate," he said.

Bagnato said Fiesta officials will build on the buzz this year's Insight created after increasing the team's cash payouts, improving its Big Ten and Big 12 conference picks and scoring a deal to televise the game on ESPN.

"This is a good base for years moving forward - the sky's the limit," Bagnato said. "The atmosphere in the stadium was electric. It was a great matchup, Tempe really promoted the game, and with Insight's efforts it was great to see it all come together."

Tempe shops, restaurants and hotels needed the business boost, said Michael Monti, co-owner of Monti's La Casa Vieja, an iconic downtown Tempe steakhouse.

Monti said he won't know the overall economic impact of the bowl game until after New Year's. But he said his business saw about a 10 percent increase when comparing this Tuesday with last year.

Fiesta officials expect this year's bowls to generate $420 million, increasing from $401.7 million generated the last time the Valley hosted three bowl games during the 2006-07 season.

"It's going to be hard to put up numbers to rival 2006. But if there was ever a year that we needed to have the three bowls, this was it," Monti said.

Monti has worked with the Tempe Diablos, a volunteer organization that helps welcome Insight Bowl fans. After watching the celebrations surrounding this year's Insight, Monti is hopeful that Insight is on the rise.

"Tempe has so many amenities that you just can't get in Glendale with (the) Fiesta (Bowl)," he said. "We've got Town Lake, Mill Avenue, Papago Park, the zoo, we're on the light-rail line. I think our bowl can really distinguish itself with our Southwest hospitality."