The memories returned for Dion Pearson when the bus approached Houchens-Smith Stadium on Tuesday night.

“They’re not good,” Pearson said. “I’ve been thinking about it a bunch here. I’m kind of reliving some of it.”

Franklin-Simpson’s football team scheduled two practices this week at Western Kentucky to prep for Saturday’s Class 4A state championship rematch against Johnson Central at the University of Kentucky’s Kroger Field at 3:30 p.m. CT.

It was at WKU this time last year when Johnson Central steamrolled Franklin-Simpson 48-0 in the 4A title game.

The Wildcats (11-3) were able to arrange two practices – Tuesday and Thursday night – to get acquainted with a turf field and a big stadium setting under the lights.

Coming off the bus and stepping on Feix Field for the first time since last year’s final game brought back uncomfortable memories for some.

“Not good from my perspective or the team’s, so we need to come back and go to Lexington and have some good memories there,” Pearson said. “We want to come out and beat them because they made us look really bad last year. We want to redeem ourselves and bring back a W for our community.”

Head coach Doug Preston said he’s moved past that forgettable night when key players dropped like flies with injuries and the offense was held to 18 total yards and one first down.

Size will be another overwhelming advantage for Johnson Central (13-1), which beat Wayne County 43-24 last week in the other 4A semifinal game. Preston said a slight change in game-week preparations this season from last is doing away with trying to emulate Johnson Central’s physicality.

The coach said by now, the Wildcats are what they are and game planning has taken a mental focus.

Franklin-Simpson is on a nine-game winning streak since losing to Meade County on Sept. 15. The Wildcats edged Collins in a 42-38 shootout win in the semifinals last Friday to reach their eighth state championship game.

“When you’ve played this many games, either you can play or you can’t,” Preston said. “We’re going to do some technique work, but it’s mostly going to be mental work.”

Preston said the idea of practicing at WKU came Sunday. A few phone calls later, they were able to work out buses to shuttle the team just over 30 minutes north of Franklin to Houchens-Smith Stadium for a pair of two-hour practices.

Part of the mental preparation comes with getting acquainted with playing on turf and in a bigger stadium setting. Johnson Central plays its home games on turf, so the playing surface at Kroger Field won’t be anything new to them like it is for Franklin-Simpson.

Hash marks from a high school field to college field are narrowed from 53-feet, 4-inches to 40-feet wide. There also isn’t a crown on a turf field like on a high school’s turf field.

“I think being able to get on the turf is really important,” Preston said. “The turf itself isn’t a big deal, it’s just a little different feeling and coming here, you’ve got that big stadium around you and it gives you some perception of what it’ll be like Saturday. That’s why we’re here.”