North Oldham walked into Jeffersontown not as an underdog but with the energy of a football team favored to win.

The Mustangs (7-4) kept that energy from the opening kickoff and emerged with a 43-14 victory Friday night. Their defense won the battle in the trenches, clogging holes fast and containing Chargers senior running back Kaden Ruff for most of the Class 4A first-round playoff game.

“I'll be completely honest and hats off and a lot of respect to JT (Jeffersontown), and I got a lot of respect for coach (Donte Ellison) and staff, but my group and our coaching staff and our team, we did feel like we were the favorite coming into this game,” Mustangs coach Brock Roberts said. “Even though we were on the road, and our record was 6-4 and their record was 9-1.”

North Oldham quarterback Jace Bullock was intercepted twice in the first half, but he came out of halftime firing; probably his most impressive throw was a fade route in the third quarter to Gray Schmittel for a touchdown to put North Oldham up, 29-8.

Jeffersontown (9-2) struggled to move the ball, and its first touchdown came in the second quarter, when Lukus McDaniels scored on a 60-yard reception.

At halftime, the Mustangs led, 15-8.

“(In) the first half, we kind of shot ourselves in the foot, man; we had three turnovers,” Roberts said.

The Mustangs actually had four turnovers in the first half, but Roberts considered the interception thrown by Bullock on a fourth-and-long pass around midfield with 28 seconds to go in the second half more of a punt. He wasn’t too concerned with that turnover.

“I've never in my life seen two fumbles on the 1-yard line that rolled out of the end zone and end up being turnovers,” Roberts said. “So we left a lot of points on the board. We felt like they should have been scores.”

Interceptions on back-to-back possessions that led to North Oldham touchdowns in the third quarter broke open the game and took the life out of the Jeffersontown home crowd.

“We turn them over close to the goal line or at the goal line. We fought; we did everything that we could do in the first half to be successful,” Ellison said. “The wheels just fell off in the second half.”

The Mustangs struggled to finish possessions in the red zone in the first half. Thanks to North Oldham’s defense, the offense had an easy job as it lived on Jeffersontown’s side of the field in the second half. At the end of the third quarter, North Oldham led, 36-8.

“The funny thing is, at halftime, we told the guys, we said, ’Look, we're not really changing anything,’ we're not gonna change our game plan because we were able to move the ball, we just didn't score because of turnovers,” Roberts said.

“We knew that if we can get up on them a little bit, that they weren't used to playing from behind because they're a 9-1 team and they only got one loss; they haven't really trailed all year. If we can continue to get up on them, come out second half, get a stop and a score, then they might fold a little bit because they're not, you know, used to being in that position.”

Schmittel did everything for his team, scoring two touchdowns, adding 111 yards receiving and picking off two passes.

“It sounds cliché, but he's an even better individual. Gray shows up every day. Whether Gray gets one catch or whether Gray catches 15 balls in a game. He is the ultimate team player, the ultimate competitor; you will not find a better human being and a better kid than Gray Schmittel,” Roberts said.

Ellison acknowledged Schmittel’s play, too. “He plays both sides of the ball. There was no way that watching film we didn't notice him, and he proved that everything he put out on tape was real.”

Ellison was disappointed the Chargers’ season came to a close so soon, but he is optimistic because of the talented young players in their program.

“I told our guys, you know, every ride got to come to an end. Our ride ended way sooner than we wanted it to. But the seniors helped change the culture. J’town football was at the bottom of JCPS (Jefferson County Public Schools) for the last 10 to 12 years, and the senior group was able to turn it around,” Ellison said.

“We love them. We're proud of them, but the freshmen, sophomores and juniors are very young, very hungry, and we'll definitely be back.”

North Oldham will have its hands full next week against undefeated Franklin Country in the second round.

Franklin County defeated North Oldham earlier this season, 60-13.

“They're the undefeated dominant team in 4A this year. So we got to have a great week of practice. Hopefully we can put together a great game plan. And hopefully we can go, shock the state next week,” Roberts said.

More: Ballard football uses fourth-quarter rally to hold off PRP in first-round playoff thriller

Reach sports reporter Prince James Story at pstory@gannett.com and follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: KHSAA football playoffs: North Oldham surprises Jeffersontown