The Pittsburgh Power, one of four Arena Football League expansion franchises, can't promise a championship, big crowds at Consol Energy Center or a roster full of local players when the season begins in March.

But Power co-owners Matt Shaner and Steelers Hall of Fame wide receiver Lynn Swann can be sure of this:

Chris Siegfried, named the first coach in franchise history Wednesday, won't take no for an answer.

"I have a hard time sitting back and waiting for things to happen," he said.

Need an example?

Siegfried, who was head coach of the Arkansas Twisters of Arena Football2 until the team folded last year, saw that the Jacksonville Sharks of the larger AFL needed an assistant last year. Siegfried decided that was the job for him.

So, he telephoned his old friend Les Moss, the Sharks' head coach, and requested an interview.

"Les said, 'Well, we're not sure, we're not sure,' " Siegfried said.

That response wasn't nearly enough to discourage Siegfried.

"I said, 'I'll be at your house tomorrow and you can tell me no to my face.' "

The next thing both of them knew, Siegfried was the Sharks' new offensive coordinator.

Siegfried recalled the conversation after his nomadic lifestyle took another turn. Pittsburgh will be the 18th city, including Taipei in an Asian football league, he will call home since embarking on a playing and coaching career in 1992, two months after graduating from Millersville University with a degree in business administration.

"I'm done (moving)," he said. "I want to be the Power coach for forever."

The Power is Siegfried's eighth stop as a coach and his fifth expansion franchise. His coaching career began in Augusta, Ga., in 2000, and in 2006 he led the Spokane (Wash.) Shock to the ArenaCup championship and was named af2 coach of the year. His Twisters teams were 79-40 in 2008 and 2009.

"He knows what it takes to build a franchise," Shaner said.

Siegfried, 41, has been employed in Arena football almost every year since 1992, drifting into real estate and movie acting from 1996-99 and appearing in "The Waterboy" and "Radio" as a stuntman and football coach.

He also became a contestant on the "American Gladiators Orlando Live," an offshoot of the former TV show. There, he suffered a hip injury when he was matched in a tug-of-war with a man 60 pounds heavier. All wasn't lost, however. He also met his wife Tammi, who was a Gladiators martial arts competitor.

Now, the couple hopes to call Pittsburgh home for a long time with son, Kody, 10, and daughter Baylee, 8.

He already has embraced his new hometown, expressing the hope that the Power can be considered the Steelers' "little brother," and possibly a steppingstone to the NFL for its players.

The Power plans an open tryout Oct. 9 at a site to be determined.

Siegfried said he won't accept his team's expansion status as a reason for failure, setting the playoffs as an annual goal.

"The reason we are going to be successful is we are going to work harder and smarter than the other teams," he said.

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