Under Mr. Cuffy's direction, he was often sent to Maurice Allan’s club in Dale City to study Allan’s distinctive newaza style. Summers were spent jogging from Howard to Georgetown University to train under Jimmy Takemori, demonstrating both dedication and a hunger for diverse instruction. Ervin was also a member of the Howard University Wrestling team, integrating folkstyle techniques into his repertoire.

After college, Ervin seized the opportunity to live and work in Japan through the JET Programme. As an Assistant English Instructor in Iwate-ken, he devoted his free time to Judo, training at local high schools and police academies. Once confident in his progress, he began training with university athletes at Fuji University. When finances allowed, he traveled by shinkansen to Tokyo to train at the Kodokan, where he earned his black belt. Inspired by the relentless discipline of Yamaoka Tesshu and Maurice Allan’s training philosophy and committed to never going more than two or three days without training, Ervin maintained a rigorous schedule—averaging five to six sessions per week.

Upon returning to the U.S., a friend encouraged him to cross-train in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at Lloyd Irvin’s Martial Arts. Initially skeptical—believing BJJ was simply newaza—Ervin’s perspective shifted dramatically after being submitted multiple times by a blue belt in his first class. Humbled and intrigued, he committed fully to the art. Under the mentorship of Lloyd Irvin and Leo Dalla, Ervin identified and corrected key gaps in his ground game. He also began applying the OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act), a strategic framework developed by Col. John Boyd, to his training methodology.

Today, Ervin holds black belts in both Judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a testament to his relentless pursuit of excellence and his openness to evolution through challenge and humility.