David Lee Roth reached out to the Van Halen faithful via the fan site The Van Halen News Desk to address rumors that the band will be playing the Superbowl.  It turns out that the gig hasn’t been offered to them — yet.  “First of all let me say this — be still my pigskin heart. That honor has not been bestowed upon us at this time though it is one we would accept in a NY minute.”

The Superbowl halftime show amounts to a free 10+ minute commercial for any artist who gets to perform, so it’s a highly coveted opportunity. Or, as Roth put it in his letter, “Playing at the Superbowl is a veritable holy grail of musical recognition, a highly prized rite of passage for (game-changing) artists. Not a spiritual rite with snake pits or Hebrew school or anything, but it’s up there.”  Still, it is extremely rare for an artist to address Superbowl rumors in such a direct way.

Van Halen performing at the Superbowl would mark a return to classic rock acts after two years of pop artists: last year, Madonna performed (with help from pop acts including LMFAO and Cee-Lo Green) and in 2010, Black Eyed Peas performed (helped out by Usher and Slash).  In the 2000′s, rock legends dominated the halftime shows, with U2, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, The Who, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band all playing the highly coveted gig.

– Brian Ives, CBS Local