Buckle up your chin straps, this could be a wild ride.

The Lance Guidry era in McNeese State football got off to a loud start yesterday, and we already know one thing: it won’t be boring.

And it could be a lot of fun.

He greeted the room full of supporters by shouting, “How ’bout ’dem Cowboys!” with his down-home country twang that gave off the feeling he was meant for this job on this campus and in this town.

“It’s time for everybody to Cowboy Up,” Guidry proclaimed. “It’s time for Lake Charles to Cowboy Up for McNeese football.”

With that, Guidry reintroduced himself to the group who already knew him and is more than willing to give him all their support.

“I want to be the first head coach at McNeese to win a national championship,” he added.

There you have it, just 11 minutes after getting the job Wednesday and Guidry had pushed all his chips into the center of the table.

If you know anything about the man who was promoted from defensive coordinator, it’s that he is an all-in guy.

He’s all-in on the field and off.

“I love McNeese and I love McNeese only,” Guidry said.

Since his family was sitting there in the front row, we can believe he was talking football programs only.

But it is that love for the school and the football program he has been a part of both as a player and coach that made Guidry the only choice in the eyes of Athletic Director Bruce Hemphill.

“We did not have to go outside the front doors of McNeese to find the best candidate,” Hemphill said. “We could not find a better fit for McNeese than Lance Guidry.”

Guidry is the people’s choice, no question about it. He is one of them.

But, is he the right coach? That we will find out.

Guidry is a fiery, emotional guy, a complete opposite of Matt Viator, who after 10 years left for Louisiana-Monroe on Tuesday.

Where Viator was a calming spring breeze, Guidry is a twisting tornado of energy and emotions.

And at times he has left proverbial wreckage in his wake off the field, including a second-offense DWI charge the night before his Western Kentucky team played LSU in Baton Rouge in 2011.

He said the charges were later dropped, but the incident showed him he was always in the public eye.

“I learned what it put my family through and my kids through,” Guidry said. “I don’t want to go through that again.”

Guidry said he has learned from his mistakes and those have made him a better person, coach and role model.

“Everybody in life makes mistakes,” Guidry said. “The number one thing is to learn from them and I have.”

By all accounts Guidry has been a model citizen since returning to McNeese to run the defense three seasons ago.

“I have learned my lesson and think I am a good role model,” he added.

One thing is for sure: he has the fans who attended behind him.

On the field Guidry’s defenses have played fast and hard. When we say fast, we mean fast. They play hair-on-fire fast.

And he is with them on every play, running, jumping, spinning his way down the sideline.

It’s as if he is in the game himself, or at least ready to jump back into the huddle.

“Lance has a passion for football, for this university and Southwest Louisiana,” said Hemphill. “We needed that.

“Lance was not hired because he was a quick hire,” he said. “He was hired because he was the right hire.”

Guidry will fire up the fan base, which until this year’s 10-1 season was lacking in excitement for the Cowboys. But after a fourth Southland Championship in 10 years, there seems to be some added interest and enthusiasm in the program once again.

To that, Guidry will add another jolt — a 5-Hour Energy-type jolt.

“You have to make McNeese a sense of pride for people again,” Guidry said.

He seems to be the perfect pitchman for the school and program.

He is a graduate of the school, a boy from Welsh who went on to accomplish big things both in the area and outside it who has now returned home and gotten what would appear to be his dream job.

He gets to lead the very football team he grew up cheering for.

“I used to sit right out there in those stands and root for McNeese on Saturday nights,” Guidry said, pointing back to where Cowboy Stadium is.

“I got the (McNeese) product right here. I am the McNeese product. I know what McNeese can do. I played here. I grew up here.”

There is no question Lance Guidry is a Cowboy, wild and unafraid. He is the living embodiment of the statue that stands outside Jack Doland Fieldhouse, the one where the cowboy rides the bucking bronco.

Now McNeese has that Cowboy inside the building leading the charge.

Like I said, buckle up your chin straps.