Wedge blocking on plays from scrimmage.

[SWFLguy]

When I officiated high school football (no it wasn't before the forward pass was invented) I saw teams that used tight blocking formations to grind out yardage. If they had big enough linemen and slower running backs it could work well. You did have to watch that the backs behind the runner weren't pushing him and the runner wasn't holding onto a blocker in front of him. It was also sometimes difficult to see who had the ball. You had to make sure you did not blow a whistle unless you saw the ball and the runner was down or stopped.