Grayling Tobias was a two-sport athlete at UMSL, playing both basketball and baseball for the Rivermen. He played in 85 games during his four seasons for the basketball team, and scored 911 career points, which ranks 20th on the all-time UMSL scoring list.

As a baseball player, Tobias was a member of three NCAA Regional teams from 1976-1978 while helping the team average 27 wins per year during that stretch. In 1977, he was a member of the team that finished third in the country at the NCAA College World Series. Tobias was an honorable mention All-American selection as an outfielder in 1977. He ranks 10th all-time in the UMSL record books with 154 career hits and is second for most career steals with 78.