July 4th Parties? Fun Midwest towns? Hartford-Phoenix

I will be flying home (to CT) at the end of June and plan to drive back to Phoenix with a friend of mine. I have from July 1st - July 7th to do the trip and would like to make a few stops. I would like to find somewhere that would be fun to stop for 2 20 year old college guys. I'm thinking of catching a baseball game in St. Louis, but I wouldnt be heartbroken if there was more fun to be had along a route that didn't include St. Louis. If anyone has any ideas for fun places to stop with a decent social scene I would appreciate it. I was thinking of making a stop in Lawrence, KS to check out KU, since I'm sure there would be college kids there. Also, does anyone know of any special fourth of july events anywhere along the way? Thanks in advance.

Come to Lawrence! The town is lots of fun (even though we can't have fireworks inside the city limits this year) and there's always something going on. We're also a short 30-minute drive from minor-league baseball (better than those overpaid whiners you get in the majors). See the brand new team website here -- http://www.tbonesbaseball.com/index.asp

Good luck on your trip!

Susan