LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) -- The team that brought the NFL the Monsters of the Midway has a new coach.

A guy named Lovie.

Desperate for someone to pull the once-proud franchise out of the dumps, the Chicago Bears named Lovie Smith their new head coach Wednesday and gave him a four-year deal. He'll be formally introduced Thursday afternoon.

Lovie may not have the same smashmouth, SuperFan ring as, say, Ditka. But he's a career coach who's spent the past three seasons as defensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams, who trump the Bears in recent Super Bowl appearances.

And if he wins, Bears fans won't care what his first name is. They'll just call him ``Coach.''

``I'm excited for Lovie, and I'm also excited for the Bears organization,'' Rams coach Mike Martz said. ``I'm not sure they fully realize the quality individual and the professional they are getting. They will soon realize that and fully appreciate it.''

Smith inherits a team with a long, storied history. Franchise founder George ``Papa Bear'' Halas helped create the NFL, and some of the greatest names in the history of the game once wore a Bears uniform.

There's some intriguing talent, too, with Pro Bowlers Brian Urlacher and Olin Kreutz, Mike Brown, Marty Booker and promising young quarterback Rex Grossman.

But the Bears haven't been a consistent force since the Ditka days. Chicago has had just one winning season in the past eight years, and hasn't won a playoff game since January 1995.

Dick Jauron was fired Dec. 29 after four losing seasons in five years.

``Tough, hard-nosed football, that's what Chicago football is all about,'' Smith said Tuesday after a second interview with Bears officials. ``That's what I've seen at times. The consistency probably wasn't there. That's why probably the coaching change was made.

``I think they can win. They just need a little boost, just a little bit more energy, a change of scenery. That's what I think I can bring.''

Smith and Pittsburgh offensive line coach Russ Grimm emerged as finalists after front-runner Nick Saban turned the Bears down last weekend. General manager Jerry Angelo also interviewed New England defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel and Jim Mora Jr., who later took the Atlanta job.

Grimm had an impressive playing career, winning three Super Bowls as part of the Washington Redskins' famed ``Hogs'' offensive line. But he lacked experience, never having been a coordinator.

Smith, on the other hand, has had just about every coaching job imaginable. He started as a high school coach and worked his way through the college ranks before Tony Dungy hired him as linebackers coach for Tampa Bay in 1996.

Smith went to St. Louis in 2001, taking on one of the league's worst defenses. The Rams had allowed a whopping 471 points in 2000. A year later, they had the league's third-best defense, giving up 273 points.

The Rams were 16th in the NFL this season, allowing 315.8 yards a game. But their 46 takeaways led the league, and they had four players with four interceptions apiece.

Leonard Little also had 12 1/2 sacks, third-best in the NFC.

``All the qualities that make him an exceptional coordinator will also make him an exceptional head coach, with his leadership and knowledge of the game and his ability to communicate with the players,'' Martz said.

Smith is the first black head coach in Bears history. He's also the fifth black head coach in the league, joining Dennis Green, hired two weeks ago by Arizona. The others are Herman Edwards of the New York Jets, Marvin Lewis of Cincinnati and Tony Dungy of Indianapolis. There have never been more than three black head coaches in a season before.

Last season, under pressure from a group headed by lawyers Johnnie Cochran Jr. and Cyrus Mehri, the league instituted guidelines that require teams with vacancies to interview minorities.

``There's a position right for everyone,'' Smith said. ``And I'm hoping this position is what is right for me.''

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