Calm down. It's not time for succession yet.

The succession race at Bank of America (BAC) is the corporate spectacle of the year. By now everyone knows departing CEO Ken Lewis has left no clear heirs. But so far, the speculators have buzzed about a group of brand-new executives and overlooked a trove of potential, if temporary, leaders: the bank's government-engineered board of directors.

The most-hyped internal candidates may actually be long shots with the wrong experience, while the least-hyped could inherit the bank.

Look beyond oft-mentioned Sallie Krawcheck—only six weeks into her new job as head of wealth management. There is veteran bank exec Barbara Desoer, who modernized BofA's technology and is fixing the mess that is mortgage lender Countrywide Financial. Or peer past Thomas Montag, the former Merrill Lynch trading executive and head of investment banking for just a month: There is BofA merger-engineer Greg Curl, who helped two chief executives grow the bank and runs risk management. Another hyped name is Brian Moynihan, a fill-in guy for several years. If he were really in line, Lewis and bank directors would not have approached outsiders like JPMorgan Chase (JPM) Treasury Services executive Heidi Miller, or former Bear Stearns executive Alan Schwartz.

Meanwhile, there's an impressive farm team on the bank's board. In the cases of other embattled financial firms like American International Group (AIG) and Citigroup (C), board members have stepped in to run the bank in sudden crises. Bank of America is likely to be no different. So get to know the players who insiders are buzzing about.

Board Members

Chad Gifford
Age: 67