Walking through the massive construction site that is Memorial Stadium in Champaign, it’s hard to imagine that on Saturday the place will be ready to host the first Illinois home game of the season.

Huge murals for the great halls were not in place as of Tuesday morning. Concession stands were littered with tools. Flat-screen TVs were being attached to walls near premium seating and tables pieced together. At every turn I ran into workers, who seemed annoyed by the tour that was filing through various phases of the three-story addition on the stadium’s west side.

But this must be like one of those home renovation reality shows where the place is in shambles the night before the open house and picture perfect when the crowd shows up. Warren Hood, associate athletics director, wasn’t the least bit nervous when he said the stadium would be ready come Saturday morning when the doors open.

“If you’d seen it a week ago, you’d have said ‘no way,’ ” he said.

But with more than 400 workers at a time tending to details this week, the place is expected to be ready to show to more than 60,000 fans. They are working in shifts that cover 16 hours a day. And cleaning crews will be working from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. from now through Saturday to assure the mess is gone.

Looking at the three-story addition that stretches across the top of the stadium’s west side, this is how the pieces stack:

Below the addition is the 1,100-seat Colonade Club, which is topped by new balcony seating. The first level of the addition includes the 77 Club, which is flanked on both sides by eight suites. The second level contains 26 of the 42 suites. And the upper level consists of the press box and university suites.

The project was designed so that the three new levels are actually pushed closer to the field than the old press box. Hood said the new press box is closer to the field than any in the Big Ten, perhaps any in the country.

The 77 Club, complete with bookend murals of Red Grange, has sold out its 200 seats and 39 of the 42 suites have been sold, ranging in price from $45,000 to $50,000 per year depending on the length of the lease. Hood said that 90 percent of the suites were leased for the maximum of 10 years.

However, the average fan never will see those areas. The biggest impact for most will come when they enter the great halls. Once massive, sterile and dank, they have been beautifully renovated with brick walls and, we were told, will include banners from the school’s Big Ten championships and bowl games and assorted murals by Saturday.

The walking space has been reduced but the number of bathrooms has increased by 60 percent, Hood said. Fans won’t even remember what the old halls looked like.

Below the student seating section in the north end zone is a new 16,000-square foot weight room that is nearly complete. Coach Ron Zook said it will be the biggest all-football weight room in the country, and strength coach Lou Hernandez expects it to be fully operational by November.

“It’s just an upgrade in equipment completely,” Hernandez said. “Some of the stuff is the best in the world. There’s no question about it, it makes a statement.”

Above the weight room is a lounge for recruits when they visit along with a nine-foot by nine-foot video wall for their viewing pleasure.

The entire project is an impressive piece of work that came with an impressive price tag of $121 million.