In a scene straight out of an action movie, a barefoot man was captured on video wrestling a massive alligator off Interstate 95 near Jacksonville, Florida, on Monday, April 28.
The man behind the daring act was none other than Mike Dragich — a licensed alligator trapper and popular social media personality known online as the “Blue Collar Brawler.” Working alongside the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), and the Florida Highway Patrol, Dragich helped remove the wild reptile from the busy highway.
“Thought you saw a barefoot guy wrestling a gator on the I-95/I-295 Southside? You weren’t seeing things — it really happened,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Facebook post sharing footage of the wild encounter.
The video shows Dragich — dressed in full camouflage and barefoot — approaching the gator with a pole. As the agitated reptile thrashed its tail and snapped, Dragich managed to steer it toward the roadside shoulder. He then secured the gator’s jaws and, with help from another responder, loaded the animal into a pickup truck, all while cars zipped by.
“Never in my wildest dreams,” an off-camera voice exclaims, as Dragich grins and shouts with excitement after completing the rescue.
The dramatic moment was later shared on Dragich’s Instagram page, where he joked in the caption, “Why did the alligator cross the road?” His account currently boasts more than 381,000 followers.
While alligators are a regular part of life in the American South — including states like Florida, Texas, Georgia, and the Carolinas — unprovoked encounters like this remain rare. According to the FWC, alligators usually shy away from humans and should never be fed or approached, no matter their size.
Anyone traveling or living in areas where alligators are known to roam is urged to stay aware of their surroundings and properly dispose of any food waste to avoid attracting wildlife.
As of Wednesday, representatives for Dragich, the Sheriff’s Office, FWC, and Highway Patrol had not yet provided additional details.
