Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press

The Detroit Lions never got a chance to develop Logan Thomas into a tight end after the Buffalo Bills swiped the former Virginia Tech quarterback off their practice squad one day after he arrived last November.

But if all goes well at next week’s rookie minicamp, the Lions might have found their next conversion candidate.

Luke Papilion, a dual-threat quarterback who amassed more than 12,000 yards of total offense at Division II Sioux Falls, is among the prospects scheduled to take part in camp on a tryout basis.

Papilion will work as a tight end for the Lions, a position he’s never played at any level but one several teams felt was his best fit as a pro.

“I did play a little bit of receiver when I was in high school, but just for a couple of games,” Papilion told the Free Press. “It’s been a while since I’ve been outside of the quarterback position, that’s for sure. But I’m excited for it. I think it’s definitely going to be a challenge going and playing a position you’ve never played before, especially at such a high level.”

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Papilion passed for 2,323 yards and 17 touchdowns last year and ran for another 987 yards and 17 TDs as he led Sioux Falls to a 12-1 record.

He’s one of only three players in Division II history with 9,000 yards passing and 3,000 yards rushing in his career, and at 6 feet 5 and 228 pounds, Papilion is uniquely qualified athletically to make the transition, his former coach at USF said.

“I think we had 28, 29 scouts that came through last year, so that was the topic of conversation,” said Jed Stugart, now the coach at Lindenwood in Saint Charles, Mo. “I know that some teams were looking at him as a quarterback, as a possible development quarterback, and then others were looking at him as an athlete.

“He’s highly intelligent. He’s very strong. He’s just always been athletic in what he’s done. I know he can catch, I know he can break tackles. I watched a lot of people bounce off him. Really, he always lifted and he was lifting and everything at Sioux Falls as a quarterback, so we monitored him at that weight and kept him at that weight. I think his body and his frame can hold weight to be a tight end because he’s never lifted to be a tight end.”

Stugart said he believes Lions scouts made two trips to Sioux Falls’ campus last season, and Papilion said they were one of four teams at South Dakota’s pro day along with the New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers.

Papilion worked out as both a quarterback and tight end at the pro day and again at Denver Broncos local day, and the Colorado native said he received “all positive feedback” from teams during the predraft process.

“They were happy to see that I was open to working out as both, not just saying I’m just going to do quarterback today or anything like that,” he said. “I sparked enough interest in the Lions so let’s hope something happens.”

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Last season, as scouts made their way to Sioux Falls to watch Papilion practice and study film, Stugart said one scout asked Papilion directly if he’d be willing to play a position other than quarterback in the NFL.

“I remember his answer,” Stugart said. “He said, ‘Look, I’ll carry the water bottles if you want me to. I’ll do whatever it takes.’ He’s got that kind of attitude. Quarterback has always been his dream and love in college, but he had a goal to try to make an NFL team.”

Papilion, who’s only experience as a receiver came during his freshman year of high school, said he knows he has a difficult transition in front of him, but he’s been training regularly in Colorado waiting for this chance.

At Sioux Falls, Papilion was known for his physical play in the Cougars’ zone-read offense, and he said his background as quarterback should help with the transition.

“Tight end has become an extremely versatile position where they’re not just big, 290-pound dudes getting dirty in the dirt anymore,” Papilion said. “They split them out, they mismatch them against linebackers. Tight ends have become not just a blocking piece. They’re doing huge things in the receiving game.

“I’m excited about it and I think the way the tight end has kind of changed over the years really benefits me.”

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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