We learned to block like that when I was in high school ('91-'95). It sucked. My senior year we learned the three point blocking technique (2 hands + face), well it was really 2 point, but we all learned on our own that it worked a lot better sticking your facemask in the other guys chest and driving.
But back to drive blocking, you can really get a defensive guy moving off the ball that way, but if the defensive guy is any good at all you will be on your face after about two steps so some of the slower developing plays that we run will be in trouble. Plus it is harder to disguise play action passing when the line if firing out on running plays putting a shoulder into a defender's hip on running plays and not on passing plays.
Another thing about "drive blocking" is that in college football, you're rarely going to have a G that can "drive" a 3 technique off the ball one on one, or a C that can drive a NG off the ball one on one. The C will probably give up 20 or more pounds to a NG, and the G will at best be evenly matched, and in the case of a guy like Fairley, or Suh, wouldn't have a snowballs chance in hell trying to block them straight up and one on one. Remember, though the OL can use their hands, they have to keep them inside the frame, the DL can grab anything below the neck to get you off him. The OTs could probably overpower DEs, if they played in a phone booth, but the DEs can out quick them if they don't use certain modern techniques. Almost no running attack (none that I can think of above pee wee ball) utilize straight on, one on one blocking. Zone blocking uses combos...get's double teams, and uses DL reaction movement to create lanes, and the back has to be coached how to run in a zone scheme. Gus's gap schemes create double teams at the point of attack, gives OL a mechanical advantage of an angle block, and uses lots of kick out blocks with the Gs on counters, and the FB/HBack on the power play. The key to OL play today is feet and hands.
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