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With college football kicking off in just over a month, the InsideHilltopperSports.com team is previewing the upcoming season for Western Kentucky.

From positional previews to opponent previews and much more, IHS is working to gear everyone up for the 2019 Hilltopper football campaign, which begins August 29 against Central Arkansas at Houchens-Smith Stadium.

Previous | Top Five Offensive Impact Players

Today, we take a look at WKU's top five defensive impact players.

A former walk-on turned full scholarship player, Ta'Corian Darden has become one of the main weapons for the WKU defensive unit.

After a breakout season in 2017, Darden remained a force for the Hilltoppers a season ago -- recording 71 total tackles (42 solo, 29 assisted) to lead WKU's defensive backs, in addition to recording team-highs of three interceptions and 11 pass breakups. Darden's 11 pass breakups ranked fourth in Conference USA and he was 1-of-12 defenders in the league with three or more INTs.

Expect another stellar year out of CoCo in 2019

Alongside Darden, Devon Key put together an impressive season for the Hilltoppers a year ago.

Coming off his redshirt freshman season in 2017, Key quickly emerged as one of WKU's main defensive backs as a redshirt sophomore in 2018 -- recording 71 total tackles (41 solo, 30 assisted) to go along with six pass breakups and three interceptions while starting all 12 games. Key also registered a 45-yard interception return for a touchdown on Sept. 8 against Maine.

With Darden and Key serving as WKU's two main defensive backs, the Hilltoppers shouldn't have a problem assembling a stout unit on that side of the ball.

DeAngelo Malone had a breakout campaign for WKU in 2018, and he's bound to do even more in 2019.

Recording 60 total tackles (31 solo, 29 assisted) to lead the Hilltopper defensive linemen, Malone also finished with nine tackles for loss, six sacks, eight quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles to make his name known. Malone's six sacks were a team best and his nine tackles for loss and eight quarterback hurries ranked second.

Malone is bound to do even more for the Hilltoppers this season.

Juwuan Jones' debut season on The Hill went pretty well.

After being redshirted in 2017 and making the switch from linebacker to defensive lineman, Jones stepped up -- and in a big way -- as a redshirt freshman in 2018.

Recording 42 total tackles (19 solo, 23 assisted), including six for loss, five quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and one forced fumble, Jones also tallied five sacks -- setting a new program FBS Era record by a freshman -- on his way to becoming the first freshman defensive lineman in WKU history to earn All-American honors.

Don't be surprised to see Jones continue to excel in 2019.

Antwon Kincade emerged as another solid defensive back for WKU last season.

Recording 29 tackles (16 solo, 13 assisted) and three pass breakups while making two starts and appearing in 11 games as a sophomore, Kincade showcased his skills and became another key part of the Hilltoppers' defense -- and he should play another important role this year.