Hall of Fame
- Served as Athletic Director from 1994-2009
- Helped UNF Athletics transition from NAIA to NCAA Division I
- Oversaw the addition of women's soccer and women's swimming and diving as intercollegiate sports
- Supervised building of many UNF facilities including:
Hodges Track and Soccer Stadium
Hayt Golf Learning Center
Dusty Rhodes Indoor Batting Facility
Andy W. Sears Swimming Pool
Arthur "Buster" Browning Athletic Training Center
Wilkins Family Strength and Conditioning Center
- Initiated the River City Rumble competition and the UNF Athletic Hall of Fame
- During his tenure, UNF captured 33 conference championship, five regional titles and three individual track and field national championships
- Ospreys earned eight All-Sports trophies under Gropper, including a record five in a row in the Peach Belt Conference from 1999-2004
