I did a google search and came up with Nigeria's Cardinal Francis Arinze as one being named as a successor for the pope:
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2003/10/6/235916.shtml
Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2003
African Touted as Pope's Successor
As rumors swirl around the Vatican that Pope John Paul II has little time to live, some cardinals are indicating that a Nigerian cardinal may be the next pope.
Speculation is rising that the next pope could well be an African, and Nigeria's Cardinal Francis Arinze is the only African cardinal eligible to be elected.
According to Australia's Herald Sun, rumors that the pope is gravely ill were sparked by the pope's private secretary, Georg Gaenswein, when he said that the 83-year-old pontiff could not walk or stand.
"He is a hero for the faithful," Gaenswein told the Herald Sun. "The fact he doesn't give up despite his illness makes him even more credible. ... When he is no longer allowed to travel, then dear God will come for him."
Word that Cardinal Arinze is being touted as a possible successor to Pope John Paul II got a boost when the archbishop of Rio de Janeiro, Eusebio Oscar Scheid, said that although a Latin American pope was a possibility, he would vote for an African.
His views were echoed by Claudio Hummes, the archbishop of Sao Paulo.
Even Cardinal Ratzinger, who heads the Vatican's congregation on doctrine and will play a key role as dean of the College of Cardinals that will appoint the next pontiff, has been quoted as saying he could envisage a black pope.
The cardinals have good reason to want an African pope. The Church believes its future growth lies in Africa, where it is fighting a fierce struggle with militant Islam for the hearts and minds of its people.
In his book, "God's Invisible Hand," 70-year-old Cardinal Arinze described his early life in a village near Onitsha, in British-ruled colonial Nigeria, his conversion to Christianity as a boy and his journey from Lagos to Rome to study for the priesthood.
According to the Herald Sun, Arinze, who became Africa's youngest bishop, recalled his ordeal as a "bishop on the run" during the Biafran War, his studies in London in the 1960s, and his surprise at being made a cardinal in 1985. After 18 years as head of the Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue in Rome, he was put in charge of liturgy and the sacraments last year, giving him vital experience in internal affairs.
The newspaper noted that rumors about the pope's possible successor will increase this month when cardinals from all over the world converge on Rome for a "pre-conclave" marking the pope's 25th anniversary in office.
If the rumors prove correct, the next pope will come from a nation that is not only one of the world's poorest, it is also Africa's happiest.
According to All Africa.com, a new study of more than 65 countries published in the United Kingdom's New Scientist magazine suggests that the happiest people in the world live in Nigeria.
The survey showed that Nigeria has the highest percentage of happy people, followed by Mexico, Venezuela, El Salvador and Puerto Rico, while Russia, Armenia and Romania have the fewest number.
...which pretty much guarantees he won't be Pope.
You know what they say... "Go into the conclave a pope, come out a cardinal..."
...That said, I think he would be highly desirable for the Seat of Rome.
I have seen early favorites picked before, so it is not out of the question for sure.