By Arash Markazi

1. Arizona State

So Sun Devil Stadium is half empty for kickoffs and Wells Fargo Arena is a prime location to kick your feet up and catch up on your reading during basketball season. None of that matters when you are walking around in flip-flops in December and bar hoping on Mill Avenue. There is a reason Playboy consistently rates ASU as the top party school in the nation, and it isn't just because the campus is overflowing with more potential bunnies than the infamous Grotto. The school has something for everyone within walking distance of campus, whether it's smart martinis at the Library, longnecks at Dos Gringos Trailer Park or the mysterious jungle juice at any one of the countless house parties taking place around school.

2. Oregon

Whether you're an avid outdoorsman who craves a runner's high or a grungy hippie who's in need of another kind of high, Eugene is the place to be. Oregon might be a Pac-10 school, but venture to beautiful Autzen Stadium on a picturesque autumn Saturday and watch the town turn into a frenzied cloud of green and yellow quaking fans that would match the enthusiasm of any school in the SEC. No town in the conference supports its teams better than Eugene, and no alumnus has done more for his school than Nike founder Phil Knight, who created the shoe giant after competing on Oregon's track team.

3. UCLA

Even the staunchest Trojan will begrudgingly tell you that the best college neighborhood in Los Angeles is in Westwood, not in South Central, as they hop into their cars and drive into enemy territory by the droves on the weekends. With theaters worthy of Hollywood premieres and cafes and boutiques frequented by celebrities worthy of Page Six pub lining the streets of Westwood Village, UCLA boasts arguably the best locale (college, or not) in the country. Where else can you play a pickup game at historic Pauley Pavilion, shop on Rodeo Drive and party on Sunset Boulevard all without traveling more than five miles through the back streets of Beverly Hills and Bel Air? The only knock against UCLA might be that it's the only school in the conference to play its football games beyond walking distance from campus, although it's hard to complain about spending a Saturday afternoon at the historic Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

4. Cal

"The People's Republic of Berkeley" might get a lot of grief from their right-wing counterparts, but regardless of your political affiliation, there's little debate about the city's reputation as being one of the better college towns. Whether you're into protests, pizzas or pints, Cal has everything you're looking for, all within walking distance of the beautiful Strawberry Canyon in the hills overlooking campus. Thanks to coach Jeff Tedford resurrecting the football program, Bears fans -- often recognized as the most hostile and obnoxious in the Pac-10 -- genuinely have something to brag about these days.