LIVING WITH THE LEGACY : JACKIE ROBINSON'S GRANDSON WANTS TO BE LEADER AT UCLA.

Byline: Matt McHale Daily News Staff Writer

On the biggest day of his life, Jesse Simms was the calmest person in the room.

Appearing at a February news conference to announce his football scholarship to UCLA, Simms could hear the anxious voice of Bruins coach Bob Toledo on a speaker phone. In the background, his mother was getting beeped from work.

Teammates and coaches from his high school team chattered excitedly. There was even a dog barking outside, but Simms, the only grandson of Jackie Robinson, just sat down and made a sandwich. No high fives, no belly laughs.

As a nation celebrates the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball's color barrier, there seems no one better than this engaging 6-foot-3, 265 pound teen-ager to carry the weight of his grandfather's legacy.

``For someone so young he has a tremendous presence,'' said Rachel Robinson, Jackie's widow and Jesse's grandmother. ``He was born long after his grandfather passed away, but there is a such a strong sense of self in Jesse, it's eerie how similar they can be.''

Although Simms was born in 1978, six years after Jackie Robinson died, there still are plenty of chances to trip on the trappings of celebrity. Not only is he Robinson's grandson, his godfather is the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

Simms also will be going from a Connecticut prep school with 180 students to a campus of 30,000 at UCLA, where his grandfather was an All-American running back. He will not be making every tackle. He may even redshirt his freshman year.

And tonight, he will stand before a sellout crowd at Shea Stadium alongside President Clinton and scores of baseball dignitaries.

Overwhelming?

``Sounds great,'' he said.

There appears to be no shakinga foundation that was built on daily stories of his grandfather's struggles in baseball and later in politics and the civil rights movement.

Nor is there too much emphasis in following Robinson's Hall of Fame career that included National League Rookie of the Year in 1947 and MVP in 1949.

``There wasn't a day where I didn't hear something about my grandfather, but there was never any pressure to follow his path,'' Simms said. ``In a way I feel like I grew up with him. He is a very strong spiritual figure. One thing my family let me know right away was that he was more than a baseball player. I knew him as a person and a man, how he was, how he raised his children. The stories put a very strong image in my mind.''

That image was carefully nurtured by his mother, Sharon, who raised Jesse as a single parent in Washington D.C., New York City and now in suburban Norwalk, Conn.

Sharon Robinson, a nurse and midwife, also lived in the glare of her father's celebrity. Born in 1950, she grew up watching her father swarmed by other children looking for autographs.

She saw her older brother Jack Jr. have difficulty coping with the comparisons to a famous father. Jack Jr. developed a heroin addiction during a tour of duty in Vietnam and struggled on and off with drugs until he was killed in an automobile accident in 1971.

``Jesse has the kind of strong self-esteem that Jackie Jr. was never able to develop,'' Rachel Robinson said. ``That is why his identification with his grandfather is so positive. Many people are damaged by their connection to famous people. Jackie Jr. really was damaged by that. He was made to feel that he was his father's competitor.

``But Jesse's mother has been so good, making sure early on that he did not define his self-worth through sports or his connection to his famous grandfather. He has had a lot of support, love and nurturing pushing him through.''

Sharon Robinson chronicled her experience as Jackie's daughter and Jesse's mother last year in a book ``Stealing Home.'' On the the day Jesse committed to UCLA, she had to leave early to deliver a baby. But there was great pride talking about a son that has taken on so much in such a short time.

``I think the greatest thing about this day is not just going to UCLA, which means so much to all of us, but that he is a student as well,'' she said. ``He is not just an athlete, but someone who could be anything he wanted to be.''

Football programs like UCLA don't usually come to places like the King Low Heyword Thomas School in an upscale section of this New York City suburb. Although it's difficult to fit the entire name on a football helmet, KLHT has a rich athletic heritage that includes baseball star Mo Vaughn of the Boston Red Sox.

In fact, Simms is just one of three players who received scholarships this year to attend Division I schools.

Linemen do not usually play right away in college, but the Bruins lack depth on the defensive side. They also have discussed moving him to offense.

Although there is uncertainty about his future position, there are no doubts about his ability to compete at this level.

``Even though he's at a small school, he does so many things well athletically for his size it makes sense,'' said UCLA defensive line coach Terry Tumey, who recruited Simms. ``You watch to see how he reacts to things he sees, if his first step is a certain way. You can see how his head is working and what he's looking at to see if he understands the game. Athletically, you watch his speed, how he changes direction, how he moves, his foot quickness, how he explodes into plays.''

And how he adapts to all the questions about his grandfather.

``When people tell me about him at UCLA, they talk more about his leadership than his records,'' Simms said. ``That's what I want to carry on. We play different positions so there really is no comparison. But I would love to be compared to him as an individual, as a person. That is my goal.''

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Photo

Photo: Jesse Simms took part as a child in a ceremony honoring his grandfather, Jackie Robinson. Robinson's wife, Rachel Robinson, is at left. Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley is next to her.

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