'Heroic actions': Army football player saves driver from fiery crash

Army cadet, father rescue man from burning car

A military cadet football player and his father leaped into action to pull a man from a burning vehicle in New York?s Hudson Valley in the early hours of August 31. (Credit: Larry Pickett via Storyful)

HUDSON VALLEY, N.Y. - In the early hours of August 31, a military cadet football player rescued a man from a burning vehicle in New York’s Hudson Valley.

The backstory:

Larry Pickett Jr., a second-year cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point, was driving through Fort Montgomery with his family when they encountered a crashed vehicle entangled in downed power lines.

RELATED: 82-year-old NJ man is the world's oldest ocean water lifeguard

Video captured on Pickett Jr.’s sister’s phone and his father’s dashcam shows the two men pulling an unconscious man from the smoking wreckage moments before the vehicle erupted in flames.

A West Point cadet and his father are being praised for their heroism after rescuing a man from a burning car in New York’s Hudson Valley. (Credit: Larry Pickett via Storyful)

What they're saying:

"I’m just grateful that we got him out, honestly," Pickett Jr. can be heard saying in the video.

RELATED: 10-year-old chess prodigy defeats 60-year-old grandmaster

The Fort Montgomery Fire Department said Sunday that the vehicle struck a utility pole, bringing down power lines.

In a social media post, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point praised Pickett Jr. for his courageous actions.

"We’re proud of the heroic actions taken Saturday night by Cadet Larry Pickett Jr, a second-year cadet and Army football player, and his father who are seen pulling a driver to safety in a video online taken by the family," the military academy posted. "Their actions are the embodiment of the US Army Values."

Larry Pickett Sr. said his son wasted no time before springing into action.

"There was no discussion," Pickett told ABC11. "He mentioned his military training kicked in, and we pulled the man 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."

Dig deeper:

Pickett Jr., a sophomore safety for the Army Black Knights, said his family was in the area to see his first football game on Friday.