BEREA, Ohio — Just over one year ago when Mike Holmgren was introduced as the new president of the Browns, he stated his objective.

"The only way you win in this league is if the coach and the person in my position and the general manager are absolutely on the same wavelength," Holmgren said. "That's the only way you have a chance.

"My goal is to have that feeling in this building, to have everyone thinking in a like manner, going in the same direction."

Those comments might best explain why Holmgren's first coaching search, which he promised would be "pretty wide," produced Pat Shurmur as the newest Browns coach.

Shurmur, 45, who has never been a head coach at any level, was the first of only three candidates interviewed by Holmgren to replace fired Eric Mangini. He was the only one with ties to both Holmgren and General Manager Tom Heckert. All three men share the same agent, Bob LaMonte, who taught and coached with Holmgren at the same high school in San Jose, Calif., 30 years ago.

Shurmur, who will be introduced at 11 a.m. today, received a four-year deal.

The going rate for a first-time head coach is about $11.25 million. Shurmur has been the offensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams the past two seasons.

Before that, he spent 10 years in Philadelphia as an assistant coach under Andy Reid -- one of Holmgren's most successful coaching proteges. Through Reid, Shurmur learned the pass-first offensive system espoused by Holmgren, the one commonly referred to as the West Coast offense.

For eight of Shurmur's years in Philadelphia, Heckert held various titles as the Eagles' player personnel chief.

While Shurmur never worked for Holmgren, his late uncle, Fritz Shurmur, was Holmgren's defensive coordinator in Green Bay for five seasons in the 1990s.

"I am extremely excited about having Pat Shurmur as the next head coach of the Cleveland Browns," Holmgren said in a statement released by the club. "Pat is a bright, young man who grew up in football and around the coaching profession. I came away from our interview very impressed with him as a person, his extensive knowledge of the game and his track record of success as an assistant coach in this league. Most importantly, I feel as though he possesses the necessary qualities which make him the right man to lead our football team."

With the selection of Shurmur, Holmgren is retracing the path that led him to his first NFL coaching job with the Packers 19 years ago.

Pat Shurmur bio

Birthdate:

Playing career:

College coaching career:

Pro coaching career:

Family:

Related stories

The bulk of Shurmur's NFL coaching experience has been with quarterbacks before he ascended to coordinator and now head coach. Holmgren went down that path, as did other members of his "coaching tree" -- Reid, Steve Mariucci, Marty Mornhinweg and Brad Childress. Jon Gruden, another branch of Holmgren's tree, started as a receivers coach before moving up the ladder. Of those, only Mornhinweg failed to reached the playoffs as an NFL head coach.

Shurmur wasn't widely regarded as a head coach candidate when the Browns selected him, but neither were most of the Holmgren proteges when they received their career break.

"It's an honor and a privilege to join an organization with such a rich history and tradition as the Cleveland Browns," Shurmur said in the Browns' statement. "I have the utmost respect for coach Holmgren and Tom Heckert, and I am impressed with the direction in which they have this franchise going.

"I have known Tom for most of my pro coaching career, and while we were in Philadelphia, he and I developed an outstanding relationship. I want to thank Mike and Tom, as well as [Browns owner] Randy Lerner, for this tremendous opportunity.

"I also want to thank the St. Louis Rams and [coach] Steve Spagnuolo for two terrific seasons and for giving me a chance to be a coordinator at this level. I am looking forward to this challenge and can't wait to get started in helping to build the Browns back to one of the elite teams in the NFL."

Shurmur's first order of business will be to assemble a coaching staff.

It's possible the Browns will retain special teams coordinator Brad Seely, but there has been speculation that a new defensive coordinator to replace Rob Ryan will be sought. A completely new offensive staff is expected.

National reports have linked the Browns to Dave Wannstedt, who had a lofty reputation as defensive coordinator under former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson before moving on as head coach of the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins. Ryan, the Browns' defensive coordinator the past two seasons, is set to interview with the Cowboys for their defensive coordinator position, according to the Dallas Morning News.

Shurmur is expected to serve as his own offensive play-caller on game days. In Cleveland, he will find an offense lacking in firepower, much like the one he left behind in St. Louis.

Like the Browns, the Rams had a workhorse running back in Steven Jackson but were hampered in the passing game by an inexperienced receiving corps after injuries wiped out veterans Donnie Avery and Mark Clayton.

With rookie quarterback Sam Bradford, the No. 1 overall choice of the 2010 draft, starting in every game, the Rams improved by six wins and finished 7-9. Their overall offensive ranking inched up to 26th out of 32nd after ranking 29th in Shurmur's first season as coordinator.

Shurmur received some criticism for play selection in the Rams' season-ending 16-6 loss to Seattle, which cost the Rams a spot in the playoffs as NFC West champion. In that game, Jackson, who rushed for over 1,200 yards during the season, carried the ball only 11 times for 45 yards. He had only four rushing attempts in the second half. The Rams had seven possessions in the second half and none longer than six plays.

In a telephone interview, Spagnuolo said: "I still think when all was said and done, what we did offensively this year was successful. There's no question we had challenges. But I liked the way the group of receivers stepped up. As Sam progressed as a player, they all improved together. Pat had to be creative and he found ways to move the football. And he had a pain-in-the-neck head coach that would suggest things."

Shurmur, a native of Dearborn, Mich., was a three-year starter at center for Michigan State University in the late 1980s. He was signed in 1988 as an undrafted free agent by the Packers -- then coached by former Browns assistant Lindy Infante -- but was released in training camp.

Shurmur returned to Michigan State in 1990 to launch his coaching career. He coached tight ends, special teams and assisted on the offensive line for a span of eight years. He worked under former Browns defensive coordinator Nick Saban the last five years there.

Shurmur moved to Stanford University in 1998 as offensive line coach before joining Reid in Philadelphia in 1999 as tight ends coach.

Reid named Shurmur quarterbacks coach in 2002. In that role through 2009, he was position coach for Eagles quarterbacks Donovan McNabb, A.J. Feeley, Koy Detmer, Jeff Garcia, and Kevin Kolb.

Shurmur is the first Browns head coach with purely an offensive background since Chris Palmer in 1999. He represents a final break from the Bill Belichick coaching tree, which spawned the Browns' past two coaches, Mangini and Romeo Crennel.

In the end, Holmgren's "pretty wide search" resulted in only three interviews -- Shurmur, Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey and Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell.

Former Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh turned down the Browns' invitation for an interview before he accepted the 49ers head coach job. Also, Gruden, who was considered a hot candidate before the search began because of his history with Holmgren, never was interviewed and said he would return to the ESPN broadcast booth in 2011.

But ultimately, Holmgren got the one he wanted. He tipped off his intentions when he said of finding a replacement for Mangini, "I can get real excited about finding a young guy and having him take the ball and go with it."

Coupled with Holmgren's statements a year ago, Shurmur fits the bill of what Holmgren had in mind.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: tgrossi@plaind.com, 216-999-4670