Marlena Smith wants to show her Jayhawk pride by baring her body in Playboy magazine.

“I think there are many different ways to show your school spirit, and this is one of them,” Smith said.

Laura Heidbreder, a business and Spanish major at Kansas University from Bartlesville, Okla., poses for her pictures by Playboy photographer David Rams. The magazine interviewed prospective models at The Eldridge Hotel for its upcoming Women

Smith, Wichita senior, was one of about 25 KU students who posed for a Playboy photographer Tuesday. The magazine was in Lawrence recruiting models for its “Women of the Big 12” spread, due out in September.

The magazine continues preliminary photo sessions today at The Eldridge Hotel, then it will select three to five women for photo shoots later this week. Some of those women could make the final cut for the “Women of the Big 12” issue.

Playboy rotates its featured university conference it shows each year. The Big 12 then the Big 8 was last featured in 1995.

Those who make the magazine get paid a “nice chunk of change,” said Eden Orfanos, the Playboy staffer who organized the shoots. But she wouldn’t disclose the pay range.

“As far as college girls go, we’re looking for someone who epitomizes the student body, who’s spunky and fresh,” Orfanos said. “I think sexy comes in all shapes, sizes and forms. It’s not always about breast size.”

Anne-Louise Monfort, Iola sophomore, said she had considered posing for a drawing class before but decided to pursue the Playboy opportunity when she heard the magazine was coming to Lawrence.

“I’m very comfortable with myself, both clothed and nude even though I don’t have a perfect 10 body,” she said,

Monfort said she went door to door in her dorm Monday looking for an issue of Playboy because she’d never seen the magazine. That wasn’t the case for Laura Heidbreder, a Bartlesville, Okla., sophomore.

“I love Playboy,” she said. “I always read the articles.”

Heidbreder said she’d told her boyfriend but not her parents about going to the shoot.

“He’s excited about it,” Heidbreder said.

Playboy photographer David Rams said he can usually determine whether a model will be good for the magazine the second he sees her.

He said shooting amateur models is more of a challenge than photographing professionals because amateurs are sometimes shy in front of the camera.

“It’s a tough job,” he said with a smile.