MISS USA 2017 - Separating The Contenders From The Pretenders

After IMG's first Miss USA Pageant last June, the change in the direction the competition was taking was clearly evident.

With the crowning of Deshauna Barber the tone was set that the pageant was looking for someone with good communication skills and a story to back it up.

Barber has confirmed in recent media interviews that this year's pageant will be no different and that interview is the most important phase of competition.

Therefore, it makes it more difficult to clearly assess who the frontrunners might be for the 2017 Miss USA crown, to be given out May 14th on Fox.

I'm going to try anyway.

After all, the same criteria was given for the recent Miss Universe Pageant and we still ended up with a stunningly beautiful Miss France as the winner, so there is no reason our next Miss USA can't have the attributes the organization is looking for and still be gorgeous.

So, here goes with my pre-arrival picks, which certainly will change after the preliminary presentation show, after which I'll put up a separate blog with more likely and more accurate and detailed predictions and observations.

THE FRONTRUNNERS -

UTAH has NEVER left my top three and I continue to rank her as my favorite to win the crown. Not only is she gorgeous, but she has a story, a pretty good one, too. Her mother, Gretchen Polhemus, was MIss USA 1989, and one of the most popular winners in the pageant's history. That would certainly attract a lot of media attention, wouldn't it? My only suggestion for Bayley would be to trim her overly long locks.

If this were old school Miss USA, TENNESSEE would be my choice. I still have her in my top three and should be a certain Miss Photogenic winner. She just doesn't take a bad picture and has a huge personality. In a sea of many blondes this season, she clearly stands out.

Completing my Top Three is MASSACHUSETTS, and not just because she is a cheerleader for my favorite football team, the New England Patriots, either. She is tall, stunning, yet not at all pageanty at all. Have heard her speak numerous times and she can do the job. As far as stories go, not sure either MASS or TN have one, but hopefully they do to maintain their status as frontrunners.

Finally, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, could score a repeat with this year's winner, who was first runner up to Deshauna in DC last year. Facially beautiful and well spoken, my only concern is that she sometimes appears too confident and it could be misconstrued as arrogance. We will see.

THE SECOND TIER -

The following states are consistently looking and sounding good and could move up to frontrunner status if my top four falter.

NEVADA - Another gorgeous blonde, whose director is Shanna Moakler, Miss USA 1995, and Shanna knows what she's doing. She softened her blonde coloring and has consistently had Lauren in the public eye since her crowning. She may, however, still be a little too sexy for the new image the pageant is reportedly going for, though.

ARKANSAS - Another blonde, but one who seems a little more Girl Next Door than Nevada. She has consistently improved her look since winning her state title.

CALIFORNIA - The winner in an extremely competitive key state, she has been fairly lowkey in pre-pageant media posts, however, she dominated her state pageant and I expect her to turn it on once she arrives at the actual national pageant.

PENNSYLVANIA - With stunning red hair, she will definitely stand out, however, her girl next door look is what brings me in even more. I would not be surprised if she made top three or actually won the whole thing.

OTHER STRONG POSSIBILITIES -

SOUTH CAROLINA is one I keep going back and forth on. ILLINOIS, too, but I think SC has lived up to her hype more than the latter. Would like to see a little more energy from SC and a little more glamour from ILL

MINNESOTA - A former Miss South Dakota at Miss America, she is tall and beautiful and has good communication skills, however, I haven't seen a lot from her since her crowning in a very competitive state pageant. Undecided.

MY SLEEPERS -

There is not a lot of hype on SOUTH DAKOTA, but she could actually be exactly what they are looking for. A former contestant at Miss America, Tessa has a gorgeous face and tremendous interview and personality. Her downfall if she had been competing three years ago would be her height. I don't think that will be a problem with the new direction the organization is clearly headed toward. She's definitely my sleeper pick. Love her!

COLORADO is one who will either soar or go unplaced. I personally like her look and communication skills, but don't know a lot about her. Just call it a hunch, but there is something about her that makes me think she could contend.

MAINE - My main criticism of her is that she hasn't always looked fresh and at 26, she is one of the older contestants. However, in recent candids, she has shed some of that pageant tread and has made me look at her again.

VIRGINIA - Another red head, I liked her when she won her state pageant, but she has been kind of under whelming since then. Needs to bring her A game, especially since PENNSYLVANIA is constantly bringing hers and because a reported top 12, rather than a traditional top 15, means only the strong will survive.

OTHER THOUGHTS -

TEXAS might get up there on sash factor alone, but I think she is in trouble, as she has a sort of harsher look and does not look fresh. She is going to need to refer to MAINE of all states, for lessons on how to fix that before the pageant begins.

NEW YORK went from blonde to red hair and it didn't do her any favors. Two red heads are red, three might be overkill. While there are a ton of blondes this year, which may have prompted her hair-color change, I just think it was a mistake and that she actually stood out more as a blonde rather than a ginger.

ALABAMA - I originally thought the state's placement record was over when she was crowned, however, she has stepped up to the plate and used her negative - being still in her teens - and turned it into a positive by getting a chic haircut and dominating the social media airwaves with a strong voice. Still think she's iffy, but would put her in before I put either TEXAS or NY in the top 12.

NEW JERSEY - Like her ethnic look, but is a little underwhelming when in action. That could easily be fixed before prelims begin.

STILL LOOKING AT -

ARIZONA, IOWA, MICHIGAN, NEBRASKA, NEW MEXICO ( tho she's dropping fast) and RHODE ISLAND.



Of course, this list isn't exhaustive or definitely not perfect by any means, it's just a pageant fan's opinion on an ever-changing competition that IMG will likely even tweak some more before the prelims begin. Also, as any pageant fan will confirm, once the girls arrive and the real pageant starts, favorites almost always fall and underdogs almost always emerge. This blog is simply my annual pre-arrival opinion.

So until next month, these are my thoughts on what should actually prove to be a quite competitive national pageant.




For more information on the candidates for Miss USA 2017, download the Miss Universe app.