Who is Larry Pickett Jr? Football player hailed a hero after video of him saving man from burning car goes viral

A viral video capturing the heroics of a college football player recently surfaced on the internet. The athlete, identified as Larry Pickett Jr, and his father were seen pulling a person out of a burning car that crashed into power lines in Upstate New York. The short clip of the rescue has garnered praise for Pickett Jr on social media. 

For those unaware, Larry is a sophomore athlete enrolled at West Point, aka United States Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS). GoArmyWestPoint.com says Pickett plays safety for the Army Black Knights football team. The six-foot-one hails from Raleigh, North Carolina, and is majoring in Systems & Decision Sciences. 

Per GoArmyWestPoint.com, Larry Pickett Jr did not appear in any games in 2024. Before attending West Point, Larry went to Enloe High School in North Carolina. Pickett has earned All-State honors twice and All-Conference honors thrice as a high school football star. He also held Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year awards. 

Larry Pickett Jr is also the nephew of former Pittsburgh Steelers Ivan "Ike" Taylor. 

U.S. Military Academy hails Larry Pickett Jr’s actions as the embodiment of the Army values

We're proud of the heroic actions taken Saturday night by Cadet Larry Pickett Jr, a second-year cadet & @ArmyWP_Football player, & his father who are seen pulling a driver to safety in a video online taken by the family. Their actions are the embodiment of the @USArmy Values. pic.twitter.com/dlccTMwonT

— U.S. Military Academy at West Point (@WestPoint_USMA) September 1, 2025

Many lauded the Black Knights' sophomore football safety for his heroics after rescuing a person from a burning car on Saturday, August 30. The social media users described the young man as a “good Samaritan” and a “brave man.” The U.S. Military Academy at West Point (@WestPoint_USMA) also praised its cadet and his father for their efforts and tweeted: 

“We're proud of the heroic actions taken Saturday night by Cadet Larry Pickett Jr, a second-year cadet & @ArmyWP_Football player, & his father who are seen pulling a driver to safety in a video online taken by the family.”

The account concluded: 

“Their actions are the embodiment of the @USArmy Values.” 

#ArmyFootball player Larry Pickett saved a man from a burning vehicle in Fort Montgomery last night pic.twitter.com/XRyskXjCSW

— Black Knight Nation (@BKKnightNation) August 31, 2025

According to ABC-owned WTVD (channel 11), Larry and his family were returning from a dinner in Times Square when they noticed a car had crashed into the power lines. The accident had happened on Route 9W in Fort Montgomery. Larry Pickett Jr and his father, Larry Pickett Sr, reportedly rushed towards the car.

As seen in the viral video, the duo pulled the man out before the vehicle was engulfed in flames. Speaking to WTVD, Larry Sr revealed how his son “jumped right into the action” without any discussion. He added: 

“He [Larry Jr] mentioned his military training kicked in, and we pulled him out. He took care of him on the side of the road until the police officers got there. And then the fire department got there shortly after."

Sharing further, Pickett Sr said: 

“It's just amazing to see him in action. And it's just not surprising because we've watched him his whole life do amazing thing.”

Larry Pickett Sr also praised his son for his past heroics during a chat with WRAL News. He recounted an incident when Larry Pickett Jr, aka LJ, chased down a shoplifter in Raleigh: 

“I remember right before we brought him to West Point, he actually chased down somebody that was shoplifting from a store in Raleigh. It was like, ‘LJ, that’s dangerous. Like, you don’t know what he could have had on him.’ It’s just his instinct to be there and to help people, and obviously his training at West Point.”

According to WTVD, the family stayed with the rescued man until the first responders arrived on Saturday night.