Daniel Sakow, Senior Staff Photographer

She might have been the one sitting in the front of geography class with the big brown eyes.

Maybe she passed you on Centennial Walkway donning a smile as hot as the sun.

She could have been the one at the last fraternity party wearing a dress that showed off her golden brown tan.

That girl, that stunning, unassuming beauty is just what Playboy wanted for its current “Girls of the Top 10 Party Schools” issue.

And that’s what Hugh Hefner got from San Diego State.

Five SDSU women have made their way into the pages of Playboy to represent the university that the magazine has dubbed the No. 5 party school in the nation on its “Top 10 Party Schools” list.

College-campus representatives conducted research of 250 campuses nationwide and found a vibrant atmosphere at SDSU.

Fun in the sun, banging social scenes, quality academics and extensive opportunities on and off campus led Playboy editors to view the campus as top-10 worthy.

And let’s not forget the beautiful women that fill Hepner and Nasatir halls.

Of the five chosen models, recent gerontology graduate Alison Waite was named May’s Playmate of the Month, earning her the cover photo and feature story.

Playboy discovered Miss May and the other four women at a casting call after it placed the university on its party-school list last November.

“Where else can you hit the beach in the morning, eat huevos rancheros in Tijuana and still make it to your first class on time,” Playboy wrote about SDSU in its May issue, which is currently on newsstands.

To celebrate the issue’s release and the women of SDSU, Playboy fans – many from SDSU – got their chance to meet three of the university’s models at an autograph session in La Jolla Monday evening.

The models, ranging from a freshman to a soon-to-be graduate, all said that they were elated to be in Playboy.

In fact, one SDSU model said this wasn’t her first time gracing the pages of the magazine.

Jenae Nicole, who said she’ll be graduating from SDSU soon, said she was in a “party picture” featured in Playboy a few years ago.

“This is Playboy, some of the most beautiful women in the world have been in it; so why not try,” Nicole said.

Posing in Playboy for the college issue, however, hit closer to home for Nicole because she got to represent the school that she loves and sees as top-10 party school material.

“I think it’s just a great place to get an education and balance a great social life at the same time,” Nicole said. “It’s the best of both worlds; that’s why it’s such an awesome school.”

But while Nicole, along with business management junior and Playboy model Sophia Deleon, are older and rarely party at SDSU anymore, the youngest of the group can often be found frequenting SDSU’s social scene.

Communication freshman and Playboy model Katelyn Marie said she definitely attends many of SDSU’s parties.

Their party styles may differ, but all three women agreed that their day-to-day life hasn’t changed much since posing for Playboy. They’ve received positive feedback from family and friends and said that they aren’t worried about the response from the SDSU community or their classmates seeing them in the magazine.

“I’ve gotten over any discomfort,” said Marie, who was named Playboy’s favorite SDSU student. “It’s out there – I did it. I knew what I was doing when I did it. I’m comfortable with it.”

Larry Djerf, vice president of retail marketing and sales for Playboy, said that the women of SDSU have captivating, pleasant personalities and that their easy-going attitudes made them enjoyable to work with.

“They seem to be someone that you know right away,” Djerf said. “They’re very outgoing ? very warm; just friendly and nice.”

These sweet, girl-next-door types are the reason that Playboy’s college issue is always a hit. They’re no Pamela Anderson or Carmen Electra; they’re the ones who pull all-night study sessions in Love Library and who eat at 4.0 Deli on a regular basis.

“(The college issues) are a good bit better than a regular issue,” Djerf said. “In a typical year, they’d always rank first or second.”

Because of the college issue’s popularity, Playboy takes careful consideration in selecting each campus on its list.

Djerf said that a lot of factors are taken into consideration by Playboy editors, including education offered at a school, athletics, the male to female ratio, social opportunities and nearby off-campus activities.

After extensive research, 10 campuses made the cut.

Placing ahead of No. 5 SDSU was the University of Wisconsin, Madison at No. 1; the University of California, Santa Barbara at No. 2; Arizona State University at No. 3; and Indiana University, Bloomington at No. 4.

Other schools include, Florida State University at No. 6, Ohio University at No. 7, the University of Georgia at No. 8, the University of Tennessee at No. 9 and McGill University at No. 10.