WASHINGTON – After a suspenseful month of exhaustive interviews involving at least 10 candidates, the Washington Redskins decided their coach would be: none of the above.

Instead, it’ll be first-timer Jim Zorn taking the mantle from Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs. Two weeks after being hired as the offensive coordinator, the former Seattle Seahawks quarterback was promoted to head coach Saturday night in a surprise ending to a secretive process that tried fans’ patience and produced a new favorite every week.

The 54-year-old Zorn agreed to a five-year contract and will be introduced at a news conference Sunday.

“I’ve always dreamed of being a head coach with a franchise rich in tradition like the Redskins,” Zorn said in a statement released by the team. “As a player who had to fight Redskins teams at RFK as well as at our home field, I know about the history of this franchise as well as the passion of its fans. I won’t let you down.”

Zorn was the Seahawks’ quarterbacks coach for the last seven years, helping develop Matt Hasselbeck into a Pro Bowl player, but he had never been a coordinator for an NFL team until the Redskins came calling. Now he’s making the jump to head coach.

“We’re proud that our search was diligent, thorough, and resulted in today’s announcement,” owner Dan Snyder said. “Jim’s track record and reputation as a player, great teacher, and as a coach makes us confident that they will translate to success for the Redskins.”

Zorn becomes the sixth coach under Snyder, who bought the team in 1999, and he ends a string of high-profile coaching hires by an owner who had developed a reputation for hiring top names at a top price. Snyder’s last three coaches were Marty Schottenheimer, Steve Spurrier and Gibbs. None had a cumulative winning record, although Gibbs took the Redskins to the playoffs in two of his four seasons.

Zorn’s hiring came after Snyder held marathon sessions with a variety of candidates. Two prominent names, Jim Mora and Steve Spagnuolo, withdrew from consideration to remain with their own teams. Jim Fassel had multiple interviews, but fans were seething when word got out that the former New York Giants coach was a possible finalist.

Others who didn’t fit the bill for a variety of reasons included Steve Mariucci, Ron Meeks, Pete Carroll and Jim Schwartz. Redskins assistant Gregg Williams had the support of many players, but he had been unsuccessful in his previous stint as a head coach in Buffalo and was fired after meeting four times with Snyder about the job.

Meanwhile, during several of the interviews, candidates mentioned Zorn as a favorable possibility as an offensive coordinator to replace Al Saunders, whose offense had been a disappointment for the last two years.

“I told him we were considering him as the next head coach, and asked if he wanted to move forward. Without hesitation he said ‘absolutely,’ and that’s all I needed to hear,” Snyder said.

AP Sports Writer Chris Jenkins contributed to this report