Regis Philbin’s seat next to Kelly Ripa isn’t even cold yet but the wheels of motion are in motion to replace him. Several names are being thrown around as the new host for ABC’s ‘Live With Regis and Kelly.’

Regis announced his retirement last week and most shrugged off the announcement as a legit retirement as he approaches his 80th birthday. Apparently he didn’t retire gracefully to hand out Whethers Original Candies to children at the park. Rumor is he diva-ed out and hit CTRL+ALT+IQUITTHISBITCH. Click HERE to find out why…

As for who will take the reins from Reg, there are a handful of actual contenders along with a slew of rumors as to who will take over.

Most Likely:

I hate to say it, but Mark Consuelo is probably the strongest contender. It will be a sickeningly sweet morning show with a plethora of tales about how Mark farts in bed while Kelly shares stories about their children’s first solid poop.

Mario Lopez would probably be second most likely. He has co-hosted the show several times. It seems obvious he’d be in the running. A problem could be his current gig with ‘Extra.’

Tom Bergeron would be another top possibility. Tom is already besties with ABC, hosts “Dancing With the Stars” and has a daytime Emmy award under his belt.

Jeff Probst is rumored to be in the running. His contract with ‘Survivor‘ is up this year and he has filled in before.

Billy Bush is another name thrown into the ring. I doubt this one as he is tied to ‘Access Hollywood,’ but never say never.

Doubtful:

Ryan Seacrest would love to dominate every aspect of tv, but I think in order for this to work out he would have to give up sleeping. We all know how important beauty sleep is and no one really wants to watch him and Kelly argue over who is prettier.

Anderson Cooper is rumored to be in the running. While I’d love to roll over every morning and turn on the Silver Fox and whisper, “Good Morning Darling,” I doubt he would do it beyond his guest spots. Currently he is trying to get his own daytime talk show off the ground. He could replace Oprah and not have to deal with a skeletal sidekick.

Neil Patrick Harris would be better than romping through a field of unicorns, but it could lead to a dead end for his acting career.

Mike Rowe is a sleeper hottie that has been captivating a female audience on Discovery Channel. Not sure where this idea came from, but I won’t deny the fact that I could listen to him talk about baking soda and still be enraptured.

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