Simon says who will be your next American Idol.

American Idol judge Simon Cowell has shared his predictions for who will win this year’s title in an interview with entertainment television show Extra. His top three candidates, in no particular order, one of whom he believes will join the ranks of Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia and Carrie, are:

- - Kellie Pickler, the 19-year-old blonde from Albemarle, North Carolina who considers calamari and spinach salad fine cuisine and was called a "little minx" (or, as she heard it, a "mink") by Simon himself last week.

- - Chris Daughtry, the 26-year-old stepfather from McLeansville, North Carolina who is rumored to already be under consideration by the band Fuel to replace their recently-parted-with lead singer.

- - Taylor Hicks, the 29-year old salt-and pepper-headed bluesman from Birmingham, Alabama who lacks the ability to dance and could easily be mistaken for the father of a fellow American Idol contestant.

A surprising mix, given Kelly Clarkson-knockoff Katharine McPhee and Constantine-esque crooner Ace Young were pegged earlier in the season as the front runners for this year’s competition. But Simon says if you placed your bets on them, you’ll be wrong. As you would if you had placed them on 16-year-old Kevin Covais, the Chicken Little lookalike contestant who, for some reason, hasn’t been voted off yet.

"He won't be winning this competition," Simon told Extra when asked about Kevin. "You heard it here first."

But Simon’s lack of faith hasn’t stopped Kevin from pulling out all the stops to win over fans, particularly female ones, who many suspect are keeping him alive – although I don’t know a single woman who voted for Kevin over anyone else on the show (including intelligible Bucky Covington). A report on www.TMZ.com even claims that he and his hometown honey, fifteen-year-old Victoria Fairclough, broke up because they believed Kevin would be more appealing to viewers if he was unattached.

Ahh, to be young, innocent and really clueless. Like making it seem that Kevin is single – which, by the way, is not a huge stretch – would win gals like me, female viewers, over. There are lots of things someone can to do to make me change my mind – cash offerings, Coach bags, trips to warm climates – but pimping out Kevin Covais is not one of them. Hey Kevin, in the words of Simon Cowell, "off you go."