Several of defensive end William Yancy’s qualities might come in handy in college football, but two in particular, said his high school coach.

Quickness and speed.

“He has as good a first step as anyone I’ve seen,” said Larry Allen, head coach at Ironwood High School in Glendale, Ariz. “He runs a 4.7-second 40. He can run people down.”

The 6-foot-6, 240-pound Yancy on Tuesday announced his oral pledge to accept Nebraska’s scholarship offer, becoming the second Ironwood player to commit to the Huskers’ 2007 recruiting class. Eric Hagg, a wide receiver/defensive back, announced his commitment to NU in November.

“It’s probably the biggest thing to ever happen to this school,” Allen said of the two commitments.

Allen gave credit to Nebraska safeties coach Bill Busch, who played a lead role in recruiting both players.

“He really did an outstanding job,” Allen said. “He asked all the right questions and had all the right answers.”

Said Yancy: “Coach Busch made it so Nebraska didn’t seem like just another school — he made Nebraska sound like THE school.”

In choosing Nebraska, Yancy — rated as a three-star prospect on a five-star scale by both Scout.com and Rivals.com — turned down offers from Arizona State, Arizona, Purdue, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington State and Oregon State. He becomes the third player in the Huskers’ 2007 class projected to play defensive end.

In helping lead Ironwood to a 9-4 record this season, Yancy made 80 tackles, including 10 sacks, despite constant double-teams, Allen said. In addition to defensive end, Yancy also spent time as an offensive tackle, tight end and wideout. Scout.com ranks him as the nation’s No. 50 defensive end.

“He’s a hard worker,” Allen said. “He knows what it takes to be a player at a place like Nebraska.”

Yancy has an idea in part because his brother, Quincy Yancy, played defensive end at Arizona State from 1996-2000. What’s more, William Yancy can draw upon the knowledge of Allen, who spent eight years in the 1980s as an assistant coach at Colorado State under Leon Fuller.

Allen is excited to watch Yancy and Hagg’s progress at Nebraska. The 6-1, 195-pound Hagg this season made more than 50 receptions and had six interceptions.

“He wants to be a wideout,” Allen said. “He’ll go up and get the ball — he’s a playmaker.”

Yancy becomes the 24th player known to have pledged to Nebraska’s 2007 class. Seven of its past eight commitments came from defensive players.

The Huskers’ class is ranked No. 9 nationally by Rivals.com, No. 10 by Scout.com.

DeAndre West, a defensive back from Oakland, Calif., apparently is no longer part of the class, as his name has been dropped from unofficial lists supplied by both Rivals.com and Scout.com.

Meanwhile, two junior college players in the class — quarterback Zac Lee and cornerback Armando Murillo — starting today can sign binding national letters of intent, as it’s the beginning of the national juco signing period.

Lee said Tuesday he plans to send his letter via facsimile this morning.

As for Murillo, “I’m pretty much planning on doing it,” he said Tuesday night.

Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.