Tampa Bay Storm assistant coach Pat O’Hara has been hired as the new head coach of the Los Angeles Avengers.

O’Hara, Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator the past two seasons, had recently been named one of three finalists for the position along with Georgia Force defensive coordinator Bob Kronenberg and Chicago Rush assistant head coach/vice president of player personnel Brian Swhwartze. The official announcement came on Friday that Los Angeles had chosen O’Hara to replace Ed Hodgkiss, who along with his entire staff was fired shortly after completing a 5-11 season in 2008.

O’Hara received a three-year contract to coach the Avengers.

“I’m ecstatic. I have a lot of work to do,” O’Hara said. “It’s a tremendous challenge. I’m excited about it, my family is excited about it. It was just something that we worked toward, it was a goal of ours. Now it’s time to reset our goals.”

It will be the first head coaching job at any level for O’Hara, 39, who is a California native and was born just miles away from where the the Avengers’ home field, Los Angeles’ Staples Center, is located.

“I grew up about three or four miles from [the Avengers’] office,” O’Hara said. “This really is a dream job.”

Los Angeles made its coaching change after the Avengers struggled through the 2008 season, which included a season-ending loss in Tampa. Hodgkiss was 58-58 overall during his tenure with the Avengers, with just a 1-5 mark in postseason play.

O’Hara interviewed once in Los Angeles with Avengers owner Casey Wasserman and president Matt Wikstrom, and then twice via phone with Wasserman over the last few weeks.

“We took our time during this process and carefully examined numerous options,” Wikstrom said in a statement.  “In the end, Pat O’Hara was the best fit for our franchise and its new direction.  In addition to the expertise he has gathered during his 15 years in the AFL, Pat has some unique intangibles that make him special.  Under his leadership, we look forward to providing our fans with the kind of winning tradition that they deserve.”

O’Hara, who also was a former AFL player with the Tampa Bay Storm and Orlando Predators and played in five ArenaBowls and on three AFL championship teams, interviewed at the end of last season for openings in Arizona and Grand Rapids. He was one of three finalists for the Rampage’s job. He said the experience interviewing for those positions helped him greatly during the process this time around.

O’Hara said he got some very good advice from Storm head coach Tim Marcum before the interviews took place, with Tampa Bay’s longtime coach telling him “make sure you know who you’re working for and what they’re about, make sure you feel comfortable with them and make sure they want to provide you the resources.” O’Hara said he got that impression from Wasserman and the rest of the Avengers’ front office.

O’Hara also thanked Marcum for all that he’s done for him over the years as a player with Tampa Bay and as an assistant coach.

“Coach Marcum has been so good to me,” O’Hara said. “I wouldn’t be where I am without him. I love him like a father.”

While Marcum now must find a replacement for O’Hara on his staff, a statement the team released on his behalf made it seem he was more than happy to part ways with O’Hara.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Pat. Pat is well deserving of this opportunity and we are proud of him. He has been with us for sometime and we will miss him,” the coach said in a statement.