Coach Papelian is a 2011 graduate of Pope High School where he was the ace of the pitching staff leading the Hounds to the region championship and an Elite 8 appearance in his senior season of 2011. Upon graduating from Pope, Papelian earned a baseball scholarship to Mercer University to play for long time Coach Craig Gibson.

Papelian joined the Pope staff for the 2023 season and immediately made an impact helping lead the program to the state championship game while serving as JV pitching coach and varsity bullpen coach. Papelian took over pitching duties for the JV team and led them to an 11 win season in 2023 as well as assisting with younger pitcher development during dedicated pitcher time during JV practice.

At Mercer, Papelian was a stalwart for the Bears pitching staff throwing over 220 innings in his 4 year career. Papelian made 89 career appearances working both as a starting pitcher making 36 career starts and coming out of the bullpen 53 times. During his senior season, Papelian helped lead the Bears to the Southern Conference regular season title. The 2014 pitching staff, which Papelian made 13 starts for and 6 relief appearances, still holds the school record for best ERA in school history and the 2013 team still holds the record for most wins in school history with 43. Papelian was named conference player of the week for his efforts on the mound on 2 occasions, once in 2014 and once in 2015.

Papelian resides in Marietta with his wife Cassidy.